When We Collide
by Elcall
Summary: Tengenji Kakeru and Yamamoto Kaito both made it to the same star team at Ayanagi Academy. They've never met before and their journey is just beginning. Or so they thought. What if their pasts were more intertwined than they knew? Brotherly Kaito and Kakeru. A three part story. Rated T for slight cursing later.
1. Part 1

**Hello! Welcome to my story! Thanks for clicking! I'm excited to share this story finally! I've been working on it since October!  
**

 **A SPECIAL THANK YOU to Natcchan~ aka _we can fly away to Gallifrey_ here on FF for being my beta! Thank you so much! **

**Also, major spoilers! For literally _everything_ starmyu related! I have replays of the episodes, hints to song lyrics, to the collab cafes, drama CDs, and OVAs! If you think you spot something, please comment! I'll give you kudos *^*  
**

 **I do not own Starmyu or the characters!**

 **~0~**

"Haru."

The little boy looked up at his tired seeming yet smiling father.

The man waved him closer, "Come on. Do you want to meet your last birthday present?"

The six year old blinked owlishly while standing, "Tou-san, my birthday was yesterday."

The man laughed exhaustedly, "That's right. But this is a late present." He reached out his hand, "Let's go see your little brothers."

The boy carefully took the hand, "Brothers?"

"That's right," he smiled. "Let's hurry and see Kaa-san."

The man led Haruto down the blank hallways into a single room where his mother lay on a bed with two cribs close beside her.

"Haruto," she smiled warmly, putting her arm out to let the boy join her on the mattress. After they settled together, she gestured to a baby in her arms and another that his father brought close. "These are your brothers. Their names are Kaito," she gestured to the one in her arms, with pale skin and hair as deep a blue as his own, "and Kakeru." She pointed to the baby that his father was holding, with tightly shut eyes and deep red strands of hair sticking out of his head.

"Why's his hair red?" Haruto asked, pointing to Kakeru.

The two adults shared a look.

His father paused, "My great uncle did have red hair…"

His mother shook her head, moving away from the topic, "It doesn't matter. He's still your little brother." She glanced at Haruto. "Do you want to hold one of them?"

Haruto smiled, "May I?"

"Of course, honey." his mother said, carefully adjusting him so that he could take Kaito from her. "Here's Kaito. Say hello."

"Hello," Haruto calmly spoke to the strange creature. It didn't react. At all. He moved his gaze from the baby to his parents.

His father grinned, "They won't be doing much for a while, you know."

Haruto simply nodded, "Can I hold Kakeru, too?"

His father nodded, and his mother reached over to take Kaito back, but Haruto moved away.

"I wanna hold them both at the same time," he said.

His father smiled then came close, "Alright, Onii-san." He carefully lifted Kakeru, who started squirming in the air, and placed him in Haruto's arms, where the baby calmed down again.

Haruto smiled at the babies, taking in their pudgy faces, "Hello Kakeru and Kaito. I'm Haruto, your big brother now. Let's get along."

 **~0~**

"Kaa-san, are we home yet?" Haruto, now six years old, asked, swinging his feet from the leather seats. It was summer time, allowing Haruto to attend a dinner event with his parents.

His mother turned her head from the front seat of the car, "Just about."

Haruto nodded, leaning back in his seat, "Good. I can't wait to tell Kakeru and Kaito about everything tonight!"

His father grinned, briefly glancing back at the boy through the mirror, "Did you enjoy it?"

Haruto turned his head to stare outside at the street lights that flashed by in the darkness of the night. "I did! Next time we should bring the twins instead of leaving them with nanny!"

His mother laughed, "I don't think so, dear. Maybe when they're bigger, like you."

Haruto nodded, "Okay." He paused, "I can't wait for that. We'll have so much fun together. Like the other day, when we were playing and Kakeru bit me and Kaito jumped on top of me!"

His parents laughed.

"Oh dear," his mother giggled, "I can't wait for then either, sweetheart."

The warm moment between the three suddenly halted when his father gasped loudly. Haruto saw a bright light directly shine on him, heard his mother scream, then everything went dark.

 **~0~**

" _Tsukigami Daichi-san, famous theater director, and his wife, Tsukigami Minami-san, Japan's representing stage actress, have died from a car crash late last night when returning from an event with their six year old son. A large truck had spun out of control, slamming into the front of Tsukigami-san's car and seemingly to kill the two instantly. Their son is currently in critical condition at the hospital. What will happen next for this family, we don't know._ "

It took a week for Haruto wake up. His arm and leg were broken, and he had a severe concussion. He was wrapped up when he woke, a nurse in the room with him.

"W-Where…" he croaked causing the nurse to turn to him in surprise, "Kaa-san? Tou-san?"

The nurse gasped, "Oh dear, it's okay…"

"Kaa-san," Haruto repeated with wide panicked eyes, "Where's Kaa-san?"

"I'm sorry honey," the nurse said, hesitating, "your parents, they're… not here."

Haruto gasped, "Not... here? Wait! Where are Kakeru and Kaito?"

The nurse stopped and gave him a confused look, "Who?"

Haruto gave a wail of distress. He struggled against the bindings of the casts on his limbs, despite the cries of the nurse. His eyes flooded with tears as the doctor and other nurses flooded into the room, "I just want my family!"

Little did Haruto know that his family was going to be broken up. Haruto would stay in his home, as he was deemed old enough to be by himself with a part time caretaker (whether it was an appropriate decision or not was another discussion).

Kakeru and Kaito were sent to an orphanage. Kakeru was soon adopted by the Tengenji family, where the head was unable to produce an heir; thus adopting a boy with red hair.

Kaito was left in the orphanage. His name was soon changed to Yamamoto Kaito as he lived in a foster home until he went to boarding schools throughout middle and high school.

Years passed, and as the boys grew, their memories of one another faded.

 **~0~**

A couple was stricken with grief. They were unable to conceive a child. Over many discussions, they finally came to a conclusion.

A sleeping child was put in the man's arm. It was late at night and the dimly lit room did nothing. The child, a few months over the age of one and a half, was asleep.

"This is Kakeru," the nurse who handed the child to him said.

The man nodded, his eyes glued to the face of the sleeping baby, "From this day on, your name will be Tengenji Kakeru." He would take the child home, and raise him like his own. "You will be the future of the Kabuki world, and I will take care of you from here."

 **~0~**

A small silver car pulled up to the drive, a tall man stepping out as a elderly woman watched from the doorstep of the building.

The man stepped to the passenger door, ducking inside the vehicle to pull out a large car seat and a diaper bag. He carried them both to the woman.

"This is Yamamoto Kaito," the man said. "His other things will be here later."

"Thank you," the woman said, taking the things from the man and bidding him a farewell.

The woman received no other instructions, taking the child into the orphanage that was already run by countless other children. Yamamoto Kaito was left in a crib to finish his sleep, but woke up within minutes, screaming and crying as he fussed around in the cage.

"Spoiled, are we?" The woman said as she looked over him, having his meltdown in the crib. "That won't work here." The child stared up at her as she spoke her next words firmly, "You're going to have to learn to follow the rules from now on."

 **~0~**

"Okay, boys, straight lines and into your seats. Quickly now," the teacher instructed. Kaito followed behind the boy in front of him, carefully managing his way through the dimly lit performance hall to get into his seat. Their middle school class was watching the performance of _Shadow and Lights_ performed by the alumni and students of Ayanagi Academy.

He read his ticket under the pale yellow light, then lightly tapped the number plate as he read and made sure it was the proper seat.

As he watched the show, Kaito held his ticket lightly in his hand. Until Alexis's shadow performed. Kaito was enchanted. The actor moved almost magically, flowers blooming on vines around him in his aura and highlighting his form.

Kaito's heart pounded in his chest. He wanted to be like that actor.

Tsukigami Haruto was his name. Kaito went back to his room that evening and searched him up. Tsukigami Haruto became Kaito's idol from that day, and the crumpled ticket a reminder for him.

 **~0~**

A tapping sound interrupted the silent room, breaking through the boy's already uneasy concentration.

"Kakeru," the older man said, "again."

Kakeru nodded, looking at his fan. His breathing was uneven as he stood. "Yes sir."

His practice session in front of his father continued until dinner, but after that he was free. Tengenji Kakeru sat outside, using his towel to wipe his face. It was another tiring day for the middle schooler.

A soft meow came from his side, pressing into his thigh. Kakeru blinked and turned his head. A smile graced his face. He reached out and pat the feline on the head, "Hello, Tavian." The kitten jumped onto his lap, purring as Kakeru continued to pet her. He laughed but it died down to a sigh. "I've been busy again with practice with Otou-san, you know. I'm going to be the best Kabuki dancer, Tavian!" Tavian meowed again. "Oh, Tavian, the play that Otou-san took me to yesterday! He said I was going to go to that school one day, so it's important to see it. It was great!" Tavian rolled over, exposing her belly. Kakeru rubbed it and lifted his gaze to stare up at the stars. "There was one actor, his name is Tsukigami Haruto, I found. He was really good. Maybe… one day I can be like him."

Tavian purred.

Kakeru smiled sadly, "I know I already told you this but... I'm still excited about it and… I don't know who else to tell."

The kitten didn't react.

Kakeru sighed, "Well, it's okay. You're a great friend to me."

Tavian mewled.

"Yeah," Kakeru smiled, "let's head to bed now."

 **~0~**

 **(First Stage [Eien Stage] Drama Track 2)**

The first day of the first year at Ayanagi Academy. Kuga and Kaito were speaking with each other in their classroom.

Kuga scoffed as he looked at Kaito, "You're really different from the other first years." He stood up, "Anyways, I don't think that you should worry about our team's level of abilities. The fact that you and that _Noble of the Kabuki World_ passed is awesome enough, isn't it?"

Kaito scowled, " _Noble of the Kabuki World_ … you mean, Tengenji Kakeru, don't you?"

Kuga raised an eyebrow, "What? You're putting on quite a sour face."

Kaito crossed his arms, "I've seen him a lot on TV and such but he strikes me as a disagreeable guy. I don't think I'll get along well with him."

"What's with that?" Kuga questioned, "It's different from when you actually meet him, don't you think?"

Kaito paused, then said, "Anyway, I don't think we're compatible."

" _Compatible_ , huh…" Kuga repeated. "Should we hold a get-together?"

Kaito raised an eyebrow at him, "Huh? Why should we do that?"

"We'll be training together a lot," Kuga said, "It'd be troublesome in the long run if we all don't get acquainted now, right?" He frowned, "I don't know the other two well also. _Hoshi_ something and _Yuki_ whatever. They had those names, I think."

Kaito kept his same inspective expression, "But still, a get-together…?" He turned his head and sighed. A sudden shadow from outside the classroom door caught his eye. "Wait… who's that loitering in the hallway?"

Kuga followed his gaze. He clicked his tongue, "Speak of the devil. Isn't that Tengenji?"

Kaito hummed, "Seems like it. What's he doing in front of our classroom? He's in Class A, isn't he?"

Kuga cast him a sideways look, "You sure know a lot for someone you're not compatible with."

Kaito scowled at his words.

The door to their classroom suddenly flew open and closed, Kakeru's figure sliding inside, "For god's sake… They're so persistent!"

Kuga blinked, "Ah, he entered."

Something sparked within Kaito at the sight of the red head. Something familiar, in a sense that couldn't be felt through a screen. Kaito turned his scowl to Kakeru, "What did he come here for?"

"Hey, Tengenji," Kuga spoke up.

Kakeru turned around in surprise, "Hah? Who are _you_?"

"I'm Kuga Shu. From the same team, Team Otori, as you."

Kakeru frowned, "Team Otori? You mean _my_ team?"

Kaito interrupted harshly, "Wait a second. Since when did it become _your_ team?"

"Hah?" Kakeru growled, "What's with that arrogant attitude, shrimp?" He pointed to himself, "I'm Tengenji Kakeru. I've stood on top of a lot of huge stages. That means that I'm different from you amateurs."

Kaito rolled his eyes, clearly turning to Kuga, "No matter how much experience you have, a nasty guy is still a nasty guy, right?"

Kuga glanced between the two, "Um, please don't get me involved."

Kakeru narrowed his eyes, "You're not referring to me, are you?"

Kaito waved his hand in the air as he said, "I admit that we have less experience than you. However, I'd like you to stop putting on airs since we all passed the same auditions."

Kakeru scoffed haughtily, "Anyone else aside from me isn't needed for the team to succeed, you boor!"

"I don't know how it goes in the Kabuki world," Kaito said, "but what we're studying for are musicals. Don't go doing things half-heartedly in training, _Mr. Noble_. It'd be shameful to show such disgraceful behaviour, right?"

Kakeru grew red with anger, "You've got some serious balls saying that to me, huh." His hand raised as he pulled it back, "I'll make you cry!"

As he brought it down, a hand suddenly grabbed Kakeru's wrist.

"Stop that, Tengenji," Kuga stared directly at him. "Raising your hand against him is inexcusable."

Kakeru stopped. He stared at the hand holding him, then at Kuga with a frown. "Kuga, was it? Let go of my hand."

Kuga dropped the hand and stepped back, "The both of you stand out too much." He sighed, "So the _Heavenly_ Tengenji Kakeru's enemy is Yamamoto Kaito, huh?"

Kakeru looked down at the blue haired boy again, "Yamamoto Kaito…?" He hummed, "Ah, that face…" He huffed and added, "That reminds me, I remember seeing you in the entrance ceremonies. You're the top student from your school, are you?" Kakeru scoffed, "Then, I'll forgive you somewhat." He narrowed his eyes and stared at Kaito, "I'll leave you with a warning. Listen, you boor. This school's star is me. All you amateurs are my supporting actors. How unfortunate, huh?" He waves a hand in the air around him, "If you're mad then curse the fact that you were born in the same age as me."

With that proclamation, Kakeru starts laughing.

Kaito deadpans, leaning over to Kuga and whispered, "What's with that guy?"

Kuga leaned over to reply, "That's just how famous people are. The celebrity world is so deep, huh?"

A call came from outside the classroom suddenly, "Ah! There he is! Tengenji-kun!"

Kakeru suddenly stopped laughing, freezing up, "The reporters… they found me!"

Kuga paused, "Don't tell me you were running away from those guys, Tengenji?"

Kakeru groaned, "That's right. Well, I understand that someone famous like me passing the auditions would be a big topic but they've been chasing me around since yesterday. It's so troublesome!" He ruffled his hair in frustration, "Geez! This is why I envy you amateurs sometimes!"

Without another word to the two, he ran out of the classroom just as the PR group entered from the other door.

"Ah! He ran away again!" One of them called, "Tengenji-kun!"

Kaito and Kuga were silent for a few moments.

"...See, I told you," Kaito said conclusively, "I _definitely_ won't get along with him."

Kuga sighed, staring after the door, "Looks like this team's got a lot to work on, huh?"

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 3)**

"Hoshitani!" Kakeru growled, leaning close to the brown haired boy.

Hoshitani smiled, leaning back, "Oh yeah, I heard that you forgot about cleaning duty."

Kakeru took a step forward, causing Hoshitani to take a step back simultaneously, "Don't say it like you had nothing to do with it!" Another step forward for Kakeru and backwards for Hoshitani, "Thanks to you I have to do penalty duty every morning for a week!" Another step, "My precious time with Tavian is…" Kakeru trailed off.

Hoshitani smiled, carefree of Kakeru's complaints, "And make some time to teach me cartwheels and dance steps, too!"

Kakeru shouted in his face, "You know what?!"

Hoshitani laughed, then turned his head as he noticed a figure pass beside them. "Oh, morning Yamamoto!"

"Hey!" Kakeru yelped at the sudden skew in their conversation.

Kaito turned his head towards Hoshitani and sneered, "It looks like you've made another friend."

"Huh?" Kakeru blinked, staring at Kaito with Hoshitani.

"I don't care what the other guys do," Kaito said, "I have no intention of following your pace." With that, he stomped away.

Kakeru and Hoshitani watched in silence.

Kakeru rubbed his face with a pensive look, "Yo, Hoshitani… does something about Yamamoto feel… weird to you?"

Hoshitani glanced at him, "No? What do you mean?"

Kakeru paused. Something about looking at Kaito made him feel weird. It was as if he was a familiar face in his memories. Something in Kaito's eyes seemed to draw him in with curiosity.

Kakeru shook his head and moved away, "Nevermind. It's nothing."

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 4)**

Many of the musical department teams were already gathered for the information session for the debut performance. Conversation bounced through the room as the boys waited for all the teams to arrive and for the meeting to begin.

Team Ootori sat near the front of the room.

Kakeru scoffed as he scrolled on his phone, "Damn it, they're underestimating us!"

Kaito overheard but didn't say anything. His frown deepened as he continued to wait in his own silence.

"Hey!" someone from behind called out. "Team Hiiragi is here!"

Many of the boys turned to give their attention to the group as they navigated to the front of the hall.

The blond and the brown haired ones stopped and glanced over Nayuki in regards for a moment before continuing on.

Hoshitani blinked, "Nayuki, do you know them?"

Nayuki turned to him, "Tatsumi-kun, Sawatari-kun, Yamamoto-kun, and I all went to the same junior high."

Hoshitani awed, "Really?"

Team Hiiragi situated themselves right in front of team Ootori; Sawatari Eigo leaned over to Tatsumi Rui and whispered, "Why is it that Yamamoto-kun, who started the year at the top of the class, on that team? I cannot understand."

The soft pink colored boy leaned over towards them, speaking loudly, "I feel bad for him, having to babysit a team of failures."

The ruffian with dark hair put his hand on the boy's shoulder, "Stop it, Ugawa. They can hear you."

Ugawa scowled, "But it's true, isn't it?" He leaned forward to look at the last member at the end of the row, "Hey, are you listening, Inumine?"

Inumine blinked and turned in surprise, "Huh? What? I wasn't listening."

Toraishi and Ugawa deadpanned, not reacting.

Tatsumi spoke, "They were chosen to be in that group. It doesn't matter what you say."

Behind them, Kaito clenched his fists in anger. Kakeru tensed up, and the entire team Ootori shifted awkwardly as their conversation died down.

The lights soon dimmed, letting the meeting begin as the members of the Kao Council entered.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 4)**

" _Ima boku wa tabi ni deru. Inishie no chizu wo hirogete,_ " Nayuki sang as he stretched his leg out on the bar.

A piano suddenly played notes out over him.

Kuga looked at Nayuki from the piano, "That part's like this, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Nayuki gasped, "Thanks!"

Hoshitani grinned, "Doing a lesson with everyone's kind of exciting, isn't it?"

Kakeru huffed, "Sure." He turned to the last member of the team, "Hey, are you warmed up yet?"

Kaito briefly glanced up from the screen of his phone to Kakeru, then went back to it, "Yeah."

Kakeru scoffed and went back to his own stretching.

Hoshitani skipped forward until he stood over the screen and looked at it, "Whatcha' watching, Yamamoto?"

Kaito jerked back in surprise. "Hey," he grunted.

"23rd Theater Awards Ceremony?" Hoshitani read. "What's that for?"

Kakeru looked up again, "You're watching the award ceremony?"

Nayuki smiled, "Are you a fan?"

"Yeah," Kaito grunted in a rough confirmation to Nayuki, then turned off the phone and stuck it in his pocket. "Briefly," he answered Kakeru.

"Of who?" Hoshitani asked again.

"Tsukigami Haruto." Ootori suddenly appeared at the doorway of the practice room. "He graduated Ayangai at the top of his class and he's the number one young musical star out there right now," he explained to the team. Ootori continued, "His father was a famous theater director and his mother was a stage actress who represented Japan."

Hoshitani blinked, "Was?"

The other boys lowered their heads as Ootori said, "His parents passed in a fatal car crash when he was six years old." He paused, "There were also rumors that he had some younger siblings, but nothing came out as a truth."

The team stared at Ootori.

Ootori laughed, "Ah well, it's nothing you boys should be concerned with. Let's start with practice, why don't we?"

 **~0~**

"Tsukigami-san, we've arrived."

Tsukigami Haruto nodded, "Thank you for the ride."

The driver smiled, "No worries. Congratulations on your award."

Haruto laughed, "Thank you." He paid the driver and exit the car, heading inside the home. For once, he was home. He entered the fair sized building, shut the door, and leaned against it tiredly.

He stared into the dark empty hall.

He still lived the home that he grew up in. The home had three bedrooms, and enough space for children to play around in. Except that he was the only child that ever got to play in the home.

This house was empty now.

After the loss of the rest of his family, the whole house was cleaned, yet Haruto remained in the hull of it. Memories of being in the home with his parents lingered in his mind, but the most painful ones were the ones of his little brothers.

Haruto took off his shoes and neatly placed them aside before going up the stairs to his bedroom. He placed his trophy down on a table and walked to his nightstand, where a few frames stood proud. Haruto took one as he sat down on the bed.

His mother and father stood, shining brightly over Haruto and his brothers. It was one of the few formal pictures the family took together, on the twins' first birthday.

There were countless others, of moments in between, good and bad, that Haruto had framed and dispersed all around the home.

Haruto stared at the photo a moment longer.

"I hope you're proud of me, Tou-san, Kaa-san," he whispered to himself. "Kakeru… Kaito… I miss both of you," Haruto sighed.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 4)**

Kaito spent extra time at practice, heading back to the dorms late. He entered the common room, ignoring Hoshitani who was watching something on his laptop at the table, and heading to the dinner trays that were sitting on the counter. His name was propped up beside one while Kuga was written on the other.

"Oh, Yamamoto, you're back," Hoshitani greeted, taking his headphones off. "I just watched some of Haruto-san's work. He's amazing! Are you his fan? Your family and you must be big supporters! It's great that you can aim for someone like him! I'll work hard too, so that one day I'll be-"

" _Work hard, work hard_!" Kaito suddenly shouted. "You sound like that's all you know how to do!" He breathed heavy, making eye contact with Hoshitani. He averted his eyes with a scoff after realizing what he said, then rushed out of the room without another word. He calmly raced down the hall and climbed up the stairs, intending on getting to his room.

"I didn't think I'd see a fight scene here," Kakeru said, not looking over at Kaito as he leaned against the wall. He lifted his eyes, "I know how irritating it can be to be compared to and be judged based on those near you." He scowled, "But don't take it out on Hoshitani, you boor."

Kaito smirked, annoyed, "You're great friends now, huh?" The frown returned to his face.

Kakeru pushed off the wall, "You know that he's practicing on his own every day to catch up to us, right?"

"So what?" Kaito responded, passing Kakeru around the corner. Something sparked inside the two at that moment. Kaito hesitated in his steps, but continued.

Kakeru's eyes widened at the feeling, but kept his gaze trained on Kaito's retreating back. "Hoshitani's not giving up."

Kaito didn't say anything back, letting the sizzling feeling in their bodies resound through the both of them.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 4)**

Nayuki returned with his groceries, Hoshitani still in the same spot he was in when he left, and started unpacking them. "I decided to make enough for everyone on our team, too, starting tomorrow," he said out loud. "Hoshitani-kun, do you like your fried eggs sweet or salty?"

Hoshitani simply grunted.

Nayuki blinked, "What's wrong?"

Hoshitani paused, then glanced over his shoulder at Nayuki. "I think I said something that made Yamamoto mad. All I did was talk about Haruto-san and… and his family maybe…"

Nayuki winced, "Oh that's definitely a taboo subject…"

Hoshitani stared at him, "Huh? Taboo?"

Nayuki nodded and explained, "Its legendary how much Yamamoto-kun hates any talk relating to his family. No one knows anything other than the fact that none of his family has ever showed up to anything during middle school. During his interview the other day, he rushed out in the middle because he was asked about his family."

Hoshitani gasped.

 _Hoshitani raced down the hall, carefully coming to a halt right outside the door. He heard a loud clatter as soon as he stopped._

" _That has nothing to do with it!"_

 _A blue haired figure stormed out of the room a moment later, and then Hoshitani was called inside._

"Was that what it was?" Hoshitani muttered.

Nayuki hummed, "On top of that, Yamamoto-kun is a big fan of Tsukigami Haruto. I think both of those subjects just make Yamamoto-kun upset…"

Hoshitani blinked, "But why? If someone asked me about my family and my dreams, I'd be happy to share it."

A voice came from the door, "It's not about how _you_ feel. Shouldn't you think about the other person's circumstances too?"

Hoshitani and Nayuki looked up to find Kuga. "Kuga-kun, welcome back," Nayuki greeted.

Kuga looked at Hoshitani, "I think everyone has a thing or two they don't want to talk about." With that, he walked off, leaving the words to sit with Hoshitani.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 4)**

A commotion started in the hallway after class between Kaito and Ugawa.

"Try saying that again!" Kaito growled in Ugawa's face.

Toraishi suddenly wrapped his arm around Kaito's shoulders, getting in between the two, "Come on, stop it."

Kaito roughly shoved him off, "Shut up!" He slammed Ugawa back against the wall.

Ugawa grunted. He turned to smirk at Kaito, "I said, you fit right in with the team of failures. I mean, you don't even have any support from your family." Kaito's eyes widened as Ugawa continued, "But it can't be helped. Is that one of the hardships of not having you family around and being such a die hard fan? Anyone would become twisted."

Kaito's hold on Ugawa's blazer loosed and his fist fell from the grasp.

Ugawa blinked in surprise, as Kaito pulled his hand back, fisting it. He propelled it forward, when it was suddenly caught by a hand.

Ugawa covered his face with his arms, "That was close. Were you trying to punch me just now? Just what I'd expect from one of the failures!"

Hoshitani let Kaito's hand go, looking over at Ugawa seriously, "Don't insult my friend. I can't help but be treated like a failure. But Yamamoto's different. As his teammates, we know. You don't know anything. You have no right to talk."

A quarrel broke out between them, becoming physical as Tengenji grabbed Sawatari and Kuga took on Toraishi. Hiiragi appear just as Kaito caught the bento box that flew from his grasp when Ugawa bumped into him.

The two teams were arranged in the Kao Council room to explain the situation.

Hiiragi dismissed them all, "You will be informed of your punishment later." With that, he exit the room, leaving the two teams alone.

Ugawa sighed out loud, "Man, it must be hard to be with these savages, Yamamoto-kun. You still have your hang-up about your family, too."

Toraishi wrapped his arm around Ugawa's mouth, "Shut up already."

Ugawa struggle against his hold.

"Let's go," Tatsumi said, glancing at them.

Toraishi dropped his hand and Ugawa looked over.

"Tatsumi," Ugawa gasped, then lowered his head, "Fine…"

Team Hiiragi turned and started to leave, yet Tatsumi approached Kaito. He smiled, "Sorry about today. Ugawa's not a bad guy, but… Yamamoto, if you're worried about something, you can always come talk to me. Aiming for the top by yourself must be hard, even for you."

"No," Kaito said, surprising them around him. "It doesn't matter if my teammates are a motley bunch or a bunch of failures. I will get past this test stage with these members. That's what I've decided."

Hoshitani grinned, "Yamamoto."

Tatsumi smiled and ducked his head in acknowledgment.

Kaito turned to look at Hoshitani, "I'll have no mercy on those holding us back."

"All right!" Hoshitani held up a fist, "Just leave it to me!"

Kakeru crossed his arms, "He's saying that because we _can't_ leave it to you, you boor!"

Hoshitani blinked, "Huh?"

"Don't sound so surprised!" The team cried at the same time. Their silence turned into laughter as they formed a new bond for their team.

 **~0~**

It was later that evening when Kaito stepped out to go on a jog and head to the park of his usual practice that Hoshitani caught him.

"Hey, Yamamoto," Hoshitani waved. "Mind if I join you?"

"Hoshitani," Kaito nodded. "That's fine."

They took off together, running down the sidewalk in silence.

"Yamamoto…" Hoshitani spoke after some time, "about earlier today…"

Kaito glanced at him through the corner of his eye, "What about it?"

"Well… I wanted to know why Ugawa was bothering you in the first place," Hoshitani finally asked.

Kaito slowed down his jog, Hoshitani following the slower pace a moment later. "Isn't that a question for him?" he sighed. Kaito stopped in his tracks and slowly turned over to Hoshitani. "I guess, to be honest... I'm a big fan of Tsukigami Haruto."

Hoshitani's eyes widened at the name, "The person who you were watching the other day during practice?"

Kaito nodded. He turned his gaze to look down the street, where cars passed and the lights of buildings shined bright in the dark. "Yes, him," he answered, "In middle school, we went to see a performance that he was in. Seeing him on stage that night… it inspired me to be just like him. The way he was able to capture the audience and made the whole performance feel like it revolved around that one scene…" he took a deep breath, "I'm… I'm not like that, but… I'm going to work hard to be."

Hoshitani's eyes widened at Kaito's words. He closed his eyes, then smiled, a laugh bubbling from him.

Kaito turned with surprise. "What is it?"

Hoshitani shook his head. With stars in his eyes, he stared up at Kaito, "That's just like me! I have a high schooler that I saw and admire and I want to perform on the same stage as him one day!" He took a step closer to Kaito, "Let's work harder together, Yamamoto, and reach our dreams!"

Kaito glanced away with unease for a second, then returned a nod, "Okay."

Hoshitani raised his fists happily, "Alright!" He ran ahead quickly, "Starting right now, Yamamoto! Full speed ahead!"

Kaito gasped, taking off immediately to catch up, "Hey, Hoshitani!"

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 11)**

The five boys of team Ootori entered the studio. They awed out loud at the hustle of the crew members. Lights were being set up, the sets were being tested, caterers were setting up, the costumes department was straightening out, and everything was moving in an organized fashion.

"Wow…" Hoshitani gasped, "it's like we're…"

"We're really out of place," Kuga completed for him as Hoshitani trailed off.

Nayuki shivered in nervousness.

Kaito looked over him, "Don't get nervous, Nayuki."

Before the boys could move to find the supervisor of their trip, one of the crew members shouted, "The actor's coming in!"

All five of them turned their heads to look at the center of attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer spoke into the mic, "thanks for waiting! He is the main actor of the company, the hero of this stage. Ladies are in love with him, gentlemen bow down to him. He is the musical prince flourishing in the moment- Haruto Tsukigami!"

Haruto walked down the steps of the stage with his costume on.

The team gawked as Kaito was the one to speak, "T-Tsukigami-san?"

Haruto tilted his head back from his conversation with the announcer, then turned fully towards them with a smile, "Team Ootori, aren't you?"

"You… you know about us?" Hoshitani gasped.

Haruto smiled, "Of course. But I don't know your names."

Hoshitani nodded briskly, "Oh! I'm Hoshitani Yuta! And these are Nayuki Toru, Kuga Shu, Tengenji Kakeru, and Yamamoto Kaito. We're team Ootori!"

Haruto froze, his eyes flickering over Kaito and Kakeru. The names made something in his chest jump. He gulped it down and smiled at them, "It's nice to meet you all. Do your best work today."

The team watched as the young star walked away.

"Y-Yes sir…" Hoshitani muttered in confusion.

Kakeru hummed, "Well."

Hoshitani nudged Kaito and grinned, "Isn't this a great opportunity for you?"

Kaito rolled his eyes at Hoshitani, "Of course it is."

Kakeru crossed his arms and nodded, "It's a great honor to work among the top star of our time."

"Oh?" Kuga raised an eyebrow.

Nayuki smiled, "Are you a fan of his, too, Tengenji-kun?"

Kakeru's cheeks tinged pink, "H-How could I not be? He's someone we should all be striving to achieve one day!"

Hoshitani laughed, "You're right, Tengenji!"

Kuga nodded, "Let's get to work then."

"Yeah," Nayuki agreed as the supervisor called them over.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 1 Act 11)**

The boys were put to work. Kaito helped the costuming department with last minute tailoring. Kakeru managed the inventory and props with the staff. Kuga was helping with the accessories, and Nayuki and Hoshitani were assisting the lighting department.

Kaito was instructed to get a box that was left in a truck outside. As he entered the studio, he almost ran into a taller figure. "Excuse me," he said, carefully stepping back and looking up.

Haruto blinked in surprise then shook his head, "You're fine. Sorry." He eyed the box in his hands, then smiled, "Working hard?"

"Yes sir," Kaito replied.

"That's good," Haruto said. His smiled softened, "Make sure you make the most from high school under Ootori's guidance."

Kaito paused, confused at the sudden piece of advice, but nodded, "I will."

"Good," Haruto nodded. He lifted a hand in a wave, "Keep at it."

"Yeah," Kaito hummed, slightly dazed.

Haruto walked off, one of the crew members calling out for him as he left. Kaito stood still, watching him leave.

"Yo, Yamamoto," a voice called. "What are you doing?"

Kaito looked up at Kakeru. He shook his head, "Nothing. I'm on my way."

Kakeru didn't seem to believe it but didn't push on, "Okay. They're calling for us now."

Kaito nodded, "I'll be right there."

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 1)**

"Ageha Riku of Team Yuzuriha," Hoshitani muttered as the last team entered the classroom.

Everyone stared as the dark haired teen stepped forward, his blond teammate following behind, then stumbling into the center of the desks.

Nayuki ran to him. "Are you all right?" he asked, crouching down.

"I-I-I'm fine…" he replied, looking up and hitting his head on the desk above him.

Kakeru scowled, "Who's the guy in the glasses?"

"Hachiya So-kun of Team Yuzuriha," Sawatari answered Kakeru. "He's a very accomplished person, but he's always a bit distracted, you might say."

"He's pretty clumsy," Tatsumi clarified.

Ageha approached Tatsumi, "Rui. We're in the same class… looking forward to it."

Tatsumi nodded, "I'm looking forward to it too, Ageha."

Ageha tilted his head, spotting Kaito. He stepped in front of him suddenly, surprising Kaito. "You're… Yamamoto Kaito."

Kaito nodded stiffly, "Yeah…"

"I'm pleased," Ageha said, "to be in the same class as you."

"With me?" Kaito repeated.

"It's because I heard you were his fan too…" Ageha continued. "Tsukigami Haruto's."

Team Ootori froze at his words, each remembering the story of their teammate.

Nayuki quickly stepped up to Ageha, "Ageha-kun, you..."

Ageha tilted his gaze over to Nayuki.

"It's fine, Nayuki," Kaito said swiftly, not removing his eyes from Ageha.

Ageha returned his gaze to Kaito. He stuck his hand out, "Nice to meet you."

Kaito took the hand boldly, "Same."

Hoshitani came up from behind the dark teen, "Um, I'm Hoshitani Yuta. Nice to meet you, Ageha." He held out his hand out for a handshake.

Ageha stared at the hand, then at Hoshitani.

The bell rang over their heads.

Ageha moved away, leaving Hoshitani's hand outstretched, "Sou, the opening ceremony is starting."

Hachiya stumbled forward to follow, "Ah, right."

Kakeru scoffed as he appeared beside Hoshitani, "What's his deal? Who refuses a hand when it's offered?"

Hoshitani grinned at him, "You slapped my hand away when I first offered it, Tengenji."

"It's okay if I do it!" Kakeru went red as he retorted.

Hoshitani laughed, "It's totally the same thing!"

"I was just teasing you at first!" Kakeru cried.

Nayuki chuckled, "I was there too, you know."

Kakeru guffawed.

Sawatari and Tatsumi approached Kaito.

"Are you alright?" Sawatari asked.

Kaito glanced at him, "Do I look like I'm not?"

Sawatari smiled, "No."

Tatsumi gave Kaito a look, "It's well known that Ageha is also a fan of Tsukigami Haruto."

Kaito took in the words and looked at the doorway, his mind whirling with the information.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 2)**

Uozumi looked over the group of boys as he stood, "First, we need to assess your skill levels." He smirked, "Don't let us down."

"Well then, let's get started!" Futaba cheered.

Futaba handed the folder with all the students' evaluation surveys to Uozumi and Saotome. Uozumi flipped through the book as the boys arranged themselves and Saotome instructed them.

He stopped at a page, a brown haired boy's image on the top. The team name read _Ootori._ He flipped the next pages, reading the names of each member on the team. He read the name of the next boy. Yamamoto Kaito. After that, Tengenji Kakeru.

His eyes narrowed at the names. Something about the names tingled in his head.

A whistle suddenly blew, Saotome's action snapping Uozumi out of his reverie. Whatever the thought was, it would have to wait.

 **~0~**

 ** **(Season 2 Act 2)****

"Cheers!" The three young men called at the same time, knocking their individual drinks against each others in the air between them.

Uozumi inspected the bag of beans, "You still like this kind of stuff?"

Futaba laughed innocently, leaning on the table with his elbow.

Saotome took a sip of his wine. "So what did you think, Uozumi? Have you picked a favorite team?

Uozumi made a noise of annoyance.

"You can't!" Futaba leaned forward, "If you get fixated on someone, you might get dumped again! Like what happened with Ootori-kun."

Uozumi slammed his drink down, "I wasn't dumped! Haru stole him away!"

Futaba reared back with annoyance, "Don't respond so seriously."

"All joking aside, though," Saotome spoke, looking over his evaluation book, "haven't we already decided who this year's star of stars is?"

"I'll have a hard time writing off Sazanami-kun's students," Futaba admitted.

"There's also the butterfly that is fascinated by the moonlight," Saotome said, flipping his book around to show Ageha Riku's sheet.

"That Haru really forced a difficult job on us," Uozumi sighed.

"Oh," Futaba blinked, "you mean that other mission?"

"I'm happy to do a favor for our beloved Haruto…" Saotome trailed off.

"But it's no simple mission," Futaba completed.

All three sighed.

Uozumi scoffed, "I don't know what's going on…" he lifted his drink, "but it seems this strange guy has been pulled into it, too." He finally took a sip, then rested a hand on his book that was open to Hoshitani Yuta's page. He tensed, lifting his hand slightly, then lifted the page with resolve. He flipped a few pages, opening the two faces up to Futaba and Saotome. "These two… do they seem familiar?"

Futaba leaned forward to read the names, "Yamamoto Kaito and Tengenji Kakeru?"

Saotome raised an eyebrow, "Isn't Tengenji Kakeru the rising young noble in the Kabuki world? Wouldn't he be familiar?"

"No," Uozumi scowled, "I mean, yeah, but that's not it. _Kakeru_. Does that not ring a bell in either of you?"

Futaba and Saotome shared confused glances as Uozumi kept his eyes trained on the pages.

"Ah, well," Futaba looked at the pictures again, "that Yamamoto Kaito does kind of look like Haruto, don't you think?"

Uozumi stiffened at Haruto's name and the idea behind Futaba's words. The thought had actually crossed his mind slightly, but he had dropped it. There was no way, was there? "What?" he cried in response, "No way! Haru's more of a frivolous jerk!"

Futaba flinched back at the sudden outrage again with a frown, "I guess…"

Saotome shook his head, "It's all in your head, Uozumi. Maybe you need sleep?"

Uozumi stuttered and scoffed, "I do not!"

Futaba chuckled, "Perhaps you do."

Uozumi groaned, slamming his notebook shut and covering the faces, "Whatever."

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 3)**

"Kakeru," the man spoke.

Kakeru straightened, looking at him. "Yes, Otou-san?"

"Your teacher tells me that your practice has not gone well."

Kakeru winced. He didn't say anything.

"You cannot slack off in your Kabuki training," the man spoke, his expression hard, "nor will a fall of performance be acceptable from your school."

"I know, Otou-san," Kakeru bowed his head. "Forgive me, I will not mess up again."

His father silently eyed him. "Good. That is exactly what I want to hear. The samples of your merchandise should be here soon, and they will be released later this month as we discussed."

"Yes sir."

His father's eyes hardened, "Do not disappoint me, Kakeru."

Kakeru stilled as he looked at his lap. "Yes sir."

"Dismissed," the man said as he stood and exited the room.

Kakeru's shoulders tensed and he clenched his fists tightly. "I need to work harder…" he muttered tightly in the silence of the empty room.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 3)**

Nayuki laughed out loud in the circle of the team as he took in the image of Kuga with Kakeru's eye mask on.

Hoshitani laughed, "That suits you, Kuga!"

"You've become handsome like me," Kakeru commented with a grin.

Kaito shook his head, "That's not a very good joke."

"What?" Kakeru growled at Kaito beside him. "Just look at this!" he said, snatching the one that Hoshitani held from his hands, "It makes your eyes ninety percent more intimidating!"

Kaito continued shaking his head with the same deadpan.

"Oh Tengenji," Hoshitani smiled, "I'm sure you'll sell a lot of these."

Kakeru moved away from Kaito and sat back, tossing the eye mask onto the table as Kuga took his off as well, "You bet it will."

"It's kinda strange though, I think," Hoshitani muttered, "would someone really buy these?"

Kakeru jumped in offense, "Are you trying to say something, you boor?"

Hoshitani waved his hands as he realized his words, "No way! I mean, I just don't get it!"

Kuga sighed, "Wouldn't you want an image of the person you are trying to reach?"

Nayuki stiffened suddenly, but no one noticed.

Hoshitani stopped. "The high schooler I admire…" He muttered, then smiled, "Of course! I get it now, Tengenji!"

Kakeru deadpanned, "Okay…"

"By the way," Nayuki interrupted, "do other Kabuki actors have these kinds of merchandise?"

Kakeru paused, "I mean, most of the younger ones have more. My father…" he seemed to hesitate at the term, looking down briefly, "he, uh, doesn't have much. More so of posters and autograph cards."

The boys stilled, noticing his hesitation.

Hoshitani carefully spoke, "Is everything alright, Tengenji?"

"Fine, fine," Kakeru tapped his leg, irritation showing on his face, "It's just…" he sighed, "just my father. He's been a little pushy with my practices." He looked away, "It's nothing I can't handle."

"We know," Hoshitani said kindly, "but you must still get tired."

"Tengenji-kun's father must be really strict," Nayuki commented. "My parents are pretty easy going on my sisters and me."

Hoshitani nodded, "Mine too." He deadpanned at his next comment, "My dad has a bad sense of humor, though."

Kaito gave him a side eye, "That makes sense."

Hoshitani gawked as the others snickered, "What? What about your family, Yamamoto?"

Kaito stiffened as all eyes landed on him.

Hoshitani saw it and stopped.

Kaito was silent as his gaze landed on his lap.

Hoshitani waved his hands nervously, "S-Sorry! If you-"

"It's fine," Kaito cut off sharply. "Actually… my family… I…" he looked at his hands, turning them over in his lap, "I'm an orphan."

The silence in the room became unbearable.

Nayuki gulped. The news explained a lot about Kaito's attitude when it came to family talk.

Even Hoshitani didn't know what to say.

"My father died when I was young," Kuga spoke. Kaito lifted his eyes to him. "Although, I have my mother, I still missed having a father figure."

Kaito nodded, "I lost my parents when I was a baby. I don't even remember it… my family."

"Sorry," Kakeru muttered, glancing away.

"Please don't," Kaito spoke tersely. "I don't want to be seen differently for this."

"We would never!" Hoshitani cried immediately. "We're your teammates and your friends! We won't judge you for this!" His shoulders softened, "You're still Yamamoto Kaito to us."

The others nodded at Hoshitani's words in agreement and reassurance.

Kaito's eyes widened as he stared at Hoshitani. He ducked his head, "Thank you."

Kakeru grabbed his things and packed them back into the bag. "Alright. It's time to get to bed. A healthy sleep schedule is important for us!"

Nayuki smiled, "Of course."

The team strained out, leaving Hoshitani and Nayuki's room, the news bearing over them but changing nothing between their dynamic.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 4)**

Kaito sat at his desk, the script of _Shadow and Lights_ open to Alexis's Shadow's pages. His eyes glazed over the words, not comprehending anything. His mind wavered back to the group practices. Compared to the others… Tatsumi, Nanjo… Ageha… he was lacking. He was lacking a lot but he didn't know what it was.

His script was already in bad condition from all the times he tensed up with it in his grasp. He tightened his fists in his lap instead.

With the way that Ageha practiced, his skill seemed levels lower. The position of Alexis's Shadow was a shadow in his goals.

He closed the script, ready to stand and go out for practice. A bright ticket caught his eye from the side of his desk. It was the ticket to Kakeru's Kabuki show that day.

Kaito's eyes narrowed. Kakeru's excitement had clearly showed when he invited both teams to his performance. Kaito was thinking that he would go. A professional performance by his very own teammate sounded like a great experience. He wanted to go, yet… his practice was more important to him at the moment. He sighed as he made up his mind.

A knock came from the door.

"Yamamoto-kun?" Nayuki called through, "We're about to head out, are you coming?"

Kaito went to the door, opening it, "Sorry. I want to practice some more."

Nayuki smiled nervously, "Of course. We'll be off then."

Kaito nodded, "Enjoy." He followed Nayuki out, but head towards the practice halls instead, where he spent the most of his day.

 **~0~**

 ** **(Season 2 Act 4)****

"Oh, so scary," Kakeru spoke to Tavian, staring at his arm. "Even if the spectators don't notice, my father always does. Right, Tavian?"

Tavian meowed from his lap.

Kakeru fisted his hand, bending his elbow to and fro. It didn't hurt too bad, but there was an aching in the joint. Hopefully his medication would help before tomorrow.

A knock came at his door abruptly, causing him to jump. He quickly pulled his sleeve back down over his arm and stared at the mass of medicine bottles and wraps strewn on his desk. "One moment!" he called, as he slammed his drawer open and started sliding the bottles inside. One slipped and knocked poor Tavian on the head.

She mewled angrily from his lap, jumping up and making Kakeru stumble. More bottles fell to the ground noisily as Tavian took refuge on the bed.

The door opened sharply, revealing Kaito with a shocked face, "What's that noise?"

Kakeru stood in a flustered manner, the mess littered around him. "I just dropped some things!" he said quickly. He folded his arms, casually ignoring the bottles across the floor and pain in his arm by leaning back against the desk. "W-What did you need?" he played off casually.

"I was going to ask you something," Kaito said carefully as he entered the room, holding up his copy of the _Shadow and Lights_ script, then dropped his gaze to the floor, "but it looks like you're hiding something."

Kakeru scoffed, waving a hand, "No, of course not."

Kaito pointed to a bottle, "That looks like painkiller. And bandages."

Kakeru grit his teeth, "Alright, you're right, _Mr. Detective_. I just got a slight elbow injury. Nothing I can't handle, you should have seen me today."

"Oh," Kaito hummed, a sudden guilt-ridden feeling rising in his gut. "I was practicing."

Kakeru looked away to hide his disappointment, "Whatever. At least Hoshitani and the others turned up in your stead."

Kaito paused, an awkward silence landing between them.

Kakeru bent down and started picking up his dropped items. "So? What did you mean to ask?"

Kaito glanced down at his script book. "Did you read through Alexis's Shadows lines? What does the tone of the third line read to you?"

Kakeru huffed as he stood, "Of course I read it." He grabbed his script and flipped through the pages. He silently read it as Kaito waited. "It feels disappointed. Like... when we're practicing a live script reading and you didn't nail an ad lib."

Kaito hummed, "I see."

"That good for you?" Kakeru asked hastily.

"Yes," Kaito nodded, looking at Kakeru, "Thank you." A beat passed over them. Things seemed to tingle inside their chests, but neither said a thing. Kaito cleared his throat and slipped back to the door, "Good night."

"Night," Kakeru replied, letting Kaito close the door. He went and turned out the lights, going to his bed and sitting on the edge, careful of the sleeping Tavian.

Kakeru sighed and stared out his window, "I wish I could play forever. Not being able to say that is the hardest part of being Tengenji Kakeru-sama, noble son of the theatrical world."

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 5)**

Hoshitani sighed, laying his head on his arm on the table.

Kakeru barely glanced up from the magazine he was reading, "What good does it do for you to get depressed?"

"Well, I haven't seen Yamamoto like that in such a long time…" Hoshitani whined.

"It's a fact that he was stressing himself over this, though," Kakeru said. "You can see it in his practices."

Nayuki glanced over from where he was wiping down the dishes, "You really noticed the most, haven't you, Tengenji-kun?"

Kakeru turned sharply to Nayuki, "Huh?"

"I mean," Nayuki clarified, "we're all worried about Yamamoto-kun, but you always understand him the most."

Hoshitani lifted his head to look at Kakeru. He hummed, "It's true. You seem to get what he's feeling the best."

"N-No I don't!" Kakeru cried, clenching the ends of the magazine, "It's just obvious how he's feeling!" The aura around Kaito whenever he practiced lately was strong yet wavering. His attitude even outside practice was rough, and Kakeru noticed it. How the others didn't see it as he did, baffled him. "Regardless," Kakeru continued, "there's nothing we can do for him." He straightened the magazine in his grasp, the words running under his gaze yet incomprehensible due his current state of mind.

"But still... " Hoshitani trailed off.

"Don't do anything that'll get you yelled at again, you boor," Kakeru advised Hoshitani. Despite sounding like he was trying to defend Hoshitani, Kakeru meant it for Kaito. He knew how hard it was to yell at Hoshitani, of all people. Their leader was someone who wanted to help everyone, and when overbearing at times, can make you feel full of regret after doing so. He knew from his first few days around Hoshitani.

Hoshitani dropped his head again. "Okay…" he whined.

Just outside the common room, Kaito dropped his hands to his sides. He wanted to apologize, he wanted this terrible feeling to go away, yet he couldn't figure it out. He just needed some more time to practice, then he would be a better fit for the role. Kaito sighed quietly; his teammates knew him well enough to say those things. He didn't want them to be true, however. He pushed off the wall and went down the hall, he would put more effort into his work.

Kuga came down the hallway in his direction, glancing at him, "I'm back."

Kaito barely nodded in response, "Yeah."

 **~0~**

 ** **(Season 2 Act 5)****

Futaba's voice rang through the practice hall, "Okay! That's all for today!"

Many of the students split up, heading to wash up. Kaito sat against the wall, when Hoshitani approached him, Nayuki close behind.

"Yamamoto…"

"What?" Kaito glanced up at him.

"I don't think I can do this, after all," Hoshitani admit. "Even if we pass the audition, there's no point if we're like this!"

"Huh?" Kaito scowled, "We swapped roles so we would pass the audition! Don't be dumb."

Hoshitani paused, "Is that okay with you?"

"What?" Kaito stared at him.

"Using strategies to make the best use of our team," Hoshitani said, "If you're forcing yourself to endure too much on your own just for that, I-"

Kaito stood up sharply, knocking his water bottle over, "Don't talk like you know me!"

Hoshitani and Nayuki flinched back.

"Y-Yamamoto-kun…" Nayuki gasped.

"All of you need to stop assuming and butting into my life!" Kaito cried, "I had finally decided to face it head-on! But now…" he clenched his teeth and looked away.

A whistle blew from behind them.

"That's enough," Saotome spoke. "There'll be no childish fighting in this sacred practice hall."

Futaba clapped his hands, "Alright, let's just calm down."

Kaito let out a shaky sigh and walked out of the hall.

"Yamamoto! Wait!" Hoshitani called, chasing after him.

The boys remaining the the room watched on.

"He was pretty mad," Nanjo commented to his teammate.

"Elites are delicate creatures," Kitahara shrugged casually. "He's been at the top of his class for so long, after all."

"Hey!" Kakeru couldn't hold back his angry call as he overheard the words from the gossiping duo.

"Tengenji," Kuga cautioned.

"Oh," Kitahara rubbed his neck, "sorry if that touched a nerve. I just didn't expect Yamamoto to be so childish."

"Ren…" Nanjo gasped.

"Honestly though," Kitahara turned to the teammates of the one he spoke about, "that's an elite for you. It must be nice to use your status to get so far. Guilty."

"You!" Kakeru growled, grabbing Kitahara by the collar. The words he spread about his teammate ticked him off. Of course no one from any other team than their own would know the things they dealt with between each other about their ambitions. The fact that talking about them behind their backs was so easy made Kakeru mad. Their hard work should be regarded more favorably, even if they were still considered the least experienced star team. "I've heard enough! Who do you think you are?"

Kitahara let out a little chuckle, "And here's his fellow elite, huh?"

"What?" Kakeru pulled Kitahara closer to scowl in his face.

"Was anything I said wrong?" Kitahara countered smoothly. "You guys are getting too worked up over this musical, anyways. No matter how hard you try, only one team will pass. It's all wasted effort in the end."

Kakeru snarled, "Why you-"

Kuga reach out and grabbed Kakeru's arm. "Don't bother, Tengenji. He's not who you should be fighting."

Kakeru let go of Kitahara, who backed away, "Huh?"

"Kitahara," Kuga addressed, "I've been wanting to ask you this for a while. Do you have any intention of passing this audition?"

"Huh? Of course I do," Kitahara replied. "In all things, musicals or otherwise, the result is all that counts. If you're going to do something, do it perfectly. If you don't win, you're guilty."

"Well then," Kuga said. He balled his fist and brought it back, swinging it with force. It stopped mere inches from Kitahara's face, as Toraishi cried from the side. Kuga flicked a finger out, "Lose the half-assed attitude and take this seriously. Because I never had any intention of letting you have the role." He tapped Kitahara on the forehead, and he stumbled back. "Let's go," Kuga said to Kakeru, turning and walking off.

"R-Right…" Kakeru stuttered, following behind. "Wait, don't order me around, you boor!"

 **~0~**

 ** **(Season 2 Act 5)****

Outside the practice halls, Hoshitani and Kaito were stopped in the outside hallway.

"What?" Kaito said into the silence.

"I'm sorry," Hoshitani said.

"Why are you apologizing?" Kaito said.

Hoshitani said nothing.

"Sorry, but could you leave me alone? I feel like I might blurt out something stupid again otherwise." Kaito said.

"I don't care about that!" Hoshitani cried. "Did you try to win the role of Alexis's Shadow for the team… for me? Or… because it's the role Tsukigami-san played?"

Kaito slowly turned to face Hoshitani, his face falling. He turned around. "Follow me," he said, leading Hoshitani away.

They ended up in the large hall where the final showcase of _Shadow and Lights_ was going to happen.

Kaito went down a few rows, entering one and stopping in front of a specific one. His hand brushed over the number the same way it had years ago. He turned around and lowered himself into the seat carefully. "I sat in this seat back then too," Kaito said softly. "It almost looked as if the role of Alexis's Shadow had been written for Tsukigami Haruto-san."

"Yamamoto…" Hoshitani trailed off.

"I knew I wasn't cut out for that role," Kaito continued, "but I wanted to prove I could do it the same way. I wanted to believe that I could catch up to him and surpass him someday. Thanks to you guys I found courage to pursue him. But I…" He brought his hand up to his face.

Hoshitani stared, then grabbed Kaito's wrist, pulling him out of his seat and up to the stage.

"Hoshitani?" Kaito gasped, "Oi, where are we going?"

He didn't answer, instead staring off at the empty seats from the center of the stage. "I really like you when you're standing on the stage. So I want you to play the role you want to play. Whether its a role that suits you or not, if it was your choice, then I'll work hard. I'll try harder than ever before to win! If Uozumi-san says we can't, we'll fight. I still don't really understand having feelings for a role, or ambition to win an audition, but I want to stand on this stage with you guys! So I'll… I'll work hard for you."

"Hoshitani…" Kaito gawked.

Uozumi suddenly climbed onto the stage, surprising both boys.

"Uozumi-san?" Hoshitani gasped.

"Have you two figured it out?" Uozumi asked.

Kaito stepped in front of the older male, "Uozumi-san, if I step forward from here, will I be able to climb over the wall I once faced?"

Uozumi reached out and placed his hand on Kaito's shoulder, "If anyone can, it's you. That's what I'm saying, Kaito."

Kaito's eyes widened and his breath hitched. He dropped his head and closed his eyes, letting out a sigh of relief.

Uozumi lifted his hand and rested it on Kaito's ducked head.

It was dark by the time the two boys were walking back to the dorms.

Hoshitani said loudly, "I'm starving!" He sighed, "I bet the others are worried about us." Kaito suddenly stopped walking. Hoshitani blinked, "Yamamoto?"

Kaito turned around to face him, "Hoshitani, I'm going to play Lambert's shadow. I'll move forward."

Hoshitani stared at Kaito in surprise, then smiled, "Yeah. Uh, but I'm a little worried about going up against Tatsumi and the rest… I'm nowhere near their level." He laughed nervously.

"That's not true," Kaito said. Hoshitani snapped his head up in surprise. "That's not true," Kaito repeated with a smile. He reached into his pocket, pulling out his old crumpled up ticket, "I don't mean to imitate Tengenji or anything, but…"

Hoshitani took the ticket, "This is…"

"It's yours now," Kaito said.

Hoshitani grasped it securely with both hands, staring at it intensely, "For me…" He nodded at him earnestly, "Thank you."

Kaito smiled in response.

A holler suddenly caught their attention.

"Hey! Are you boors coming or not?"

Both boys looked to the entrance of the dorms to see three familiar forms.

Nayuki turned to say something to Kakeru, too quiet for the two to hear from the gates.

Hoshitani laughed, tucking the ticket into his pocket before starting to run forward, Kaito following behind. "You guys didn't have to wait out here for us!" he grinned.

"We were worried!" Nayuki smiled.

"Not me!" Kakeru crossed his arms.

Hoshitani laughed at his obviousness.

"Everything's settled now?" Kuga asked, looking between Hoshitani and Kaito.

Kaito let out a breath and nodded, "I'm going to go for the role of Lambert's Shadow."

The three stilled.

Hoshitani smiled at their reactions, "It's fine! Yamamoto and I can do it!"

Nayuki let out a relieved sigh, "Of course!"

Kakeru grinned, "Now that that's settled, if any team is gonna earn those training roles, it's team Ootori!"

"Yeah!" Nayuki and Hoshitani cried in agreement; Kaito and Kuga also agreeing as the team reasserted their will to secure their roles for the graduation play.

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 6)**

The sight of burning lights and laughing boys embedded into the sights of the two who stood of to the side.

Haruto blinked at Ootori's words, then turned back to the crowd, "How interesting. I see. So he's your precious student."

Ootori tilted his head to glance at Haruto, "And you? Has anyone gained your interest?"

Haruto paused and grinned, "Other than Hoshitani?"

"Well, yeah," Ootori smirked.

Haruto laughed, letting his gaze flick over the large group. His eyes were drawn to a circle of five specifically, where a redhead and blue haired teen stood beside each other. "Well… I do have to say that your team is the most peculiar one. They have strength in them."

Ootori laughed loudly, "They sure are. I'm proud of how far they've come. Although, they still have space to grow."

Haruto hummed, "I look forward to it."

"Yeah," Ootori agreed, "me too."

 **~0~**

 **(Season 2 Act 9)**

All the teams had returned back to the dorms, the five students announced with the training roles just announced along with Hoshitani's surprise lead role. It was late and the teams had settled back to their night routines, many in already retired in bed.

Kaito shuffled into the empty dorm kitchen to grab a late strawberry milk.

"Yo, Yamamoto!" A voice called out to him suddenly. Kaito pulled out of the fridge to see Kakeru. "Congrats on the role. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were in that practice role from the beginning."

Kaito raised an eyebrow at him as he opened his milk, "Thanks, I guess."

Kakeru grinned as Kaito approached, "We all knew that I was going to get the role of Hardy, though."

"Of course, oh _noble son of the theatrical world_ ," Kaito said plainly, sipping his cold milk.

"What's with that tone?" Kakeru gawked.

Kaito snickered.

Kakeru huffed, then slammed his hand against Kaito's back then resting it on his shoulder. Kaito coughed at the impact as Kakeru said, "We both made it. It's just gonna be a lot more work now."

The two made eye contact. An odd warmth filled Kaito, spreading from where Kakeru's hand rested on his shoulder.

Kaito sighed, ignoring the feeling and shrugging the hand off, "That's a given."

Kakeru laughed, retracting his limb, "Well then. I'll see you tomorrow. Good night."

"Good night," Kaito returned as Kakeru left the kitchen. He sighed into his milk, bringing it up to sip.

Some kind of connection to the redhead, despite meeting him just as they formed a team, pulled at Kaito. He always felt strange around Kakeru. It was a feeling that he didn't know how to describe, and it felt weird to address. It has been almost two years of being on team Ootori, and the team had naturally grown close. Yet, moments when he was with Kakeru, his stomach churned in an almost uncomfortably familiar way.

There were moments when the two were in sudden sync, and they were brought to attention when Hoshitani or the others would point it out. Neither of them knew what to make of the news; instead, they just left it.

What could it be, anyways? Kaito had never met Kakeru before high school. Kakeru came from a noble family and Kaito was a nobody. It didn't matter what the feeling was, because it was nonsense.

So he ignored it.

Some people might say they trust their gut, but…

Kaito didn't believe in those kinds of things.

 **~0~**

 **You made it to the end! Congratulations! Thank you! Let me know what you think about this AU! What was your favorite scene in this chapter? My favorite was the scene from season 2 act 4, as Tengenji wraps his bandages in his room ^^ I like it because I was so sad that Kaito didn't go with them in that episode TnT**

 **Please excuse any grammar mistakes! :)**

 **Two more parts to come, so stay tuned! Leave a review! Thanks for reading!**


	2. Part 2

**Here's part 2!** **Just a note, Kaito and Kakeru are addressed by their first names because I don't want it to get it confused with the change in Kaito's last name.**

 **~0~**

Tsukigami Haruto sighed as he leaned back into his blankets. It was late at night, and he finally made it home. It was the start of another rough week. Now, especially, since it was _that_ time of year again.

His phone vibrated on the nightstand beside him. From the comfort of his bed, he slowly turned his head to the device, before lazily throwing his arm out and grabbing it. He stared at the name of the caller then finally pressed the green button, bringing it up to his ear.

" _Haru,_ " Uozumi spoke through the line.

"Uozumi," Haruto sighed. "How are you?"

" _Forget me, you idiot,_ " Uozumi said. " _What are you up to?_ "

Haruto sighed again, rolling to his side. His mind whirled.

" _Haruto_ ," Uozumi called out after a moment.

"Yeah, I'm here," Haruto replied.

" _It's that time of year again…_ " Uozumi trailed off.

Haruto let out a huff of laughter, "You remember it every year."

Uozumi gasped, " _It's not like I worry about you! You just keep working without taking a break!_ "

"Thank you, Uozumi," Haruto said, "You're a good friend."

Uozumi was quiet. " _So? How are you really?_ "

Haruto mulled it over. "Not too well," he admit. "It's been… fifteen years now." Haruto gasped suddenly, the verbal admission shocking him. He shot forward to sit up.

" _Haru. Calm down. Talk to me._ "

"Fifteen years, Uozumi," Haruto repeated breathlessly. His heart rate picked up. "I haven't- I haven't seen them in-"

" _Haruto breathe,_ " Uozumi spoke again. He was silent as Haruto calmed his breathing. " _Tell me about them. What do you remember?_ "

Haruto paused, thinking about the answer to the question. "My parents… they were so in love with each other. They loved me too. I remember one time, they took me to the zoo," he recalled softly, sharing the story with the patient Uozumi. He sighed. "And then Kakeru and Kaito. They never had these memories."

" _Haruto…_ "

"My father said that Kakeru's red hair came from his side of the family. Kaito got my mother's hair just as I did, you know," Haruto went on.

" _Yeah, you have shared their photos with me,_ " Uozumi said. " _You know… your brothers_ are _still out there..._ "

Haruto stopped. "Yes?" He did know that.

" _You're an adult now,_ " he went on, " _why don't you find them?_ "

"Find them?" Haruto carefully repeated.

" _You can trace them through the paperwork,_ " Uozumi informed. " _But… there's also Ootori's team. The two boys-_ "

"No," Haruto cut off sharply. "That's just… a coincidence. I won't target them for a small thing like that. I'll start from the source," he finished with determination.

Uozumi calmly spoke, " _Okay. If anyone can find them, it'll be you._ "

Haruto let out a breath. "Thank you, Uozumi. Honestly, you're a great help to me."

Uozumi scoffed, " _Of course I am._ " He added, " _Tell me if you need something done._ "

"I will," Haruto nodded, despite not being seen.

" _Goodnight._ "

Haruto ended the call, and dropped his phone into his lap. He mulled over the conversation.

He should be searching for his family. He had waited long enough. And now that the rush of work things had calmed down for him, he had the energy to go after it.

With a new resolve, Haruto laid back into his blankets for a night of rest.

 **~0~**

" _Nii-san! Say Nii-san, Kaito!"_

" _You know they can't talk yet."_

" _I'm trying to teach them to say it early! Come on, Kaito! … is being stubborn and won't say it either! Don't be shy, okay? I'm your Nii-san!"_

A shocked gasp ripped from Kaito's throat as he shot up in bed. "Nii-san?" he whispered through his panting.

It was still dark, yet he could see the form of Kuga's jacket on his chair, indicating that he was asleep above him.

Kaito loosened his fists that he had unconsciously tightened around his sheets. It was _that_ kind of dream again. The one where he heard people calling him and talking around him without seeing any faces. They were simply entities carrying sound. It felt like a memory, yet he didn't remember it. When he thought about it, it had to be because he had no other recollection of ever hearing the strange voices. They were simply that: voices in his head of people talking to him.

Whatever it was, it shook him. To not know who was talking to him. To not know what they looked like. To not know what they were talking about.

Growing up, all he was allowed to do in his caretakers home was to stay in his designated room unless he was given permission to do otherwise. As a shy kid, that was no problem, and he was pushed down whenever he was in the home. It was at school where he was able to mature and get over his shyness.

All this time he had countless thoughts and questions about his family, his real family. The people who could have cared about him. About the things that caused him to be orphaned… who his parents were… did he have siblings.

None of which he got answers to from those who were in charge of him.

But if he dreamed that someone was telling him to call them _Nii-san_ , then… did he have a brother?

Kaito sighed and laid back down, his eyes staring at the underneath of the bunk above him. He wanted answers; but he didn't know how to get them.

For now… he closed his eyes, trying to let sleep come over him again as the clock ticked to 3:18.

 **~0~**

Kaito walked into the kitchen of the dorm, intending on grabbing a water bottle.

"Oh," Nayuki looked up from the table, "Yamamoto-kun, are you going somewhere?"

Kaito glanced over, where Nayuki, Hoshitani, and Kakeru were sitting at the table. "Just for a run," he answered. He took the bottle in his hand.

"Oh," Hoshitani leaned forward, "want us to come along?"

Kaito shook his head, "It's fine, I won't be long." He waved a hand back at them as he stepped out, "See you."

The trio stared as the blue haired teen's figure disappeared.

Hoshitani hummed.

"Hey," Kakeru spoke up softly, "does Yamamoto seem… a bit off to you two? Like, lately?"

Hoshitani and Nayuki looked to Kakeru.

Hoshitani shook his head, "Nah, not really. He seems okay."

"To me, too," Nayuki said. He frowned, "Why?"

Kakeru leaned back, crossing his arms. To be honest, he felt some kind of bad energy coming from Kaito. He seemed distracted; his mind occupied by other things. Usually he was just aloof, but his expression just now seemed pensive, almost sad and anxious. It made Kakeru feel agitated himself.

Kakeru shook his head, "Nevermind. I guess it was just me."

Hoshitani and Nayuki shared a look.

"Well, okay," Nayuki said.

Hoshitani shrugged, "If you say so."

The two continued talking about their plans for the day.

Kakeru stared at his hands, still musing over Kaito and his odd behavior. How could no one else see it? Kaito was clearly feeling off; he could feel it himself.

Wait, he could feel it himself? How did that make sense? He could-

"What do you think, Tengenji?" Hoshitani suddenly asked.

Kakeru lifted his head, "Ah, yeah. Sounds good." He let out a shaky smile, which Hoshitani and Nayuki accepted. Kakeru shook his head lightly, letting the topic of Kaito leave his mind as he paid attention.

 **~0~**

Haruto stepped outside, taking a deep breath in of the fresh air. Back in Japan, finally.

He reached into his pocket and flipped out his cell phone. He pressed a contact and dialed.

" _What are you calling for?_ "

Haruto grinned as he replied, "Guess where I am _._ "

Haruto listened as Uozumi took a deep breath, then groan, " _Haru, you ass. You're back, aren't you?_ "

Haruto laughed, enjoying the reaction, "I sure am. I landed about an hour ago."

" _Oh?_ " Uozumi spoke, " _And the first thing you did was call me? I'm honored._ " He said sarcastically.

"I know," Haruto replied, starting to walk. "I'm heading home actually."

" _Great. I actually don't stalk you, you know. That's more Saotome's deal,_ " Uozumi deadpanned.

Haruto scoffed, "Yeah, yeah. I was going to say that since I'm back and I have a break until my next work, that I'm going to start searching. For Kaito and Kakeru."

Uozumi was silent for a moment. "... _Are you serious?_ "

"Yeah," Haruto responded firmly.

Uozumi huffed, " _And you're going to do it yourself? Why not hire a private investigator?_ "

"You have a point," Haruto stated, "but I think I would enjoy the break from work."

" _Fair,_ " Uozumi said. " _So? Where are you going to start?_ "

"At home," Haruto said firmly. "There has to be papers about everything that happened in the office."

" _Sounds good,_ " Uozumi replied. " _Ah, I gotta go now. Let me know if you need anything, or find anything._ "

"Yeah, thanks," Haruto answered, then hung up the call. He stretched his arms out in front of, staring up into the sky as the sun shined over him.

He hoped that he would succeed.

 **~0~**

The office was one room in the house that Haruto did not frequent often. It was a small room in the fair room, holding a few bookshelves on film history and cabinets of papers that belonged to his father.

Haruto flicked on the light and took in the setting.

With a sigh, he stepped to the nearest cabinet and pulled open the top drawer to begin his search.

It took him about two and a half hours and two cabinets later to find some leads. Haruto had mostly gotten distracted by reading through his father's files, but the top drawer of the last cabinet brought up some important papers about child custody and adoptions.

The papers revealed the court orders that he was allowed to stay home with a caretaker, while the twins were sent to an orphanage for their young age.

Under the piles of official wording, was finally a name of an orphanage.

Haruto quickly wrote down the name. This was where he was going to go to find his brothers.

It took him days to get to the orphanage. He had initially gone to the orphanage immediately after in a rush, but they had rejected him without an appointment. Thus, Haruto was forced back home from the one and a half hour drive to continue searching with what he had at home.

Which wasn't much else other than things about himself and the name of the orphanage.

When he returned to the orphanage, it ended up as a bust. The elder in charge did not know about the twins, as he had joined the establishment a year after they were taken there. The only papers revealed that the two were transferred from the orphanage, to another one, of which he got another name and address.

This time, Haruto did make an appointment. This was where he was given some more vital information. Kakeru and Kaito were split up. Kakeru was soon adopted by the prestigious Tengenji family. Kaito was put under the care of another family.

It took a while for Haruto to accept the news. Even the twins had been separated. They were so young, too, did they even know about each other? Of course they wouldn't.

Haruto was angry and upset but… it was time for him to be strong. He was going to reunite his family.

 **~0~**

Kakeru knocked carefully on the panel door in front of him.

"Enter."

He slid the door open and entered calmly. "You wanted to see me, Otou-san?"

His father watched him from his desk, then motioned his forward, "Yes. Sit."

Kakeru obeyed.

"Kakeru. You have been doing very well these past few weeks, with your performance on the _Shadow and Lights_ and with your Kabuki shows. I am proud of you," he said.

Kakeru straightened in surprise, then smiled down at his hands shyly, "Thank you, Otou-san."

"You have done well in your fifteen years," his father continued.

Kakeru paused at his words, looking up with a slight frown, "I'm sixt-"

His father held up his hand to stop Kakeru from finishing. "These past years have truly been a blessing for me. I have been able to raise you and you have grown in ways I would not have imagined. And so," Kakeru's face shifted to slight confusion. "I must tell you the truth."

A beat passed between the two of them, before his father spoke again.

"Kakeru, my son. You are adopted."

Kakeru's world stopped. "W-What?" he whispered. His heart dropped to his stomach. "O-Otou-san…"

His father nodded at him.

Kakeru's eyes widened, "No… I… I look like you!"

He hummed, "It's true that we share similarities. However it is no lie that you are adopted."

Kakeru slumped back, his body shaking. His mind went blank. He didn't know what to think. He needed to get out of there.

He stood up in a rush, crying out a speedy _excuse me_ and ran out of the room. He ran down the hallway, out the door, and into the streets, where he briskly walked down the road.

He was adopted. Him, the noble son of the theatrical world, Tengenji Kakeru, wasn't even a real Tengenji. His eyes burned at the thought. All the hard work he did, all the attention he got; it was all for something fake, not even true about him.

What would he do? What would happen to him? Why did his father keep it from him? Should he keep calling him… his father?

Kakeru walked. He kept walking; these thoughts and many others coming and going through his head. He finally found the small park near school, where he had unconsciously walked to. He sighed and went to the bench. He needed to sit down.

He sat; the lamp in the center of the area illuminating the small space. It had gotten dark already and no one was in the park.

Kakeru cradled his head as he leaned his elbows on his knees. His face scrunched in a flurry of various emotions. There was anger, that he was raised in a lie. There was sadness, that his father wasn't his real father. There was confusion, why wasn't he told before.

He squeezed his eyes shut, tear welling up from them.

A voice spoke, "Tengenji?"

Kakeru snapped his head up. In front of him basking under the light was Kaito.

Kakeru quickly straightened up, wiping his face with his palms. "O-Oh, Yamamoto. I didn't see you there!" he laughed awkwardly, turning his head away.

Kaito watched him silently.

"What are you doing here?" Kakeru said into the silence.

Kaito pointed to the ground beside the bench to a plastic bottle, "I left my water bottle here from training this morning."

"Just take it and go," Kakeru huffed, waiting for him to leave so he could wallow by himself. Kakeru watched as he picked up the bottle from the end of the bench then sat down. He blinked as Kaito quietly stared ahead of him. "What are you doing?"

Kaito didn't turn to him, "Sitting. It's late. You shouldn't be out alone."

Kakeru clicked his tongue and crossed his arms. "You train alone every day," he muttered. _Alone_. The word repeated in his head. He was adopted. He was alone. Kakeru turned his head and covered his face with a hand as the corner of his eyes burned. The tears carefully streamed out of his eyes when he couldn't hold them back anymore. An uncomfortable sob came out quietly, as Kakeru covered his face to try to keep it down.

Kaito didn't move a muscle as Kakeru cried, his quiet sobs loud in the silence of the park.

Kakeru scolded himself internally for being so weak and being unable to control his cries in front of Kaito. His hiccuping died down, tears still pooled in his eyes.

He suddenly heard footsteps from beside him, and looked up to see Kaito walking away.

Kakeru's stomach crumbled. Of course. He was so pathetic that he couldn't even keep company. No one wanted him around. He covered his face, hunching over his lap in distress.

He heard footsteps return. "Here. Drink up."

Kakeru looked up through fresh tears at an orange can that pushed itself into his hand. He stared up at Kaito.

Kaito simply twisted around and sat down again with his own can in hand. He took a sip of the orange juice.

Kakeru stared at the can. Then he looked up at Kaito. To the can. Kaito.

Kaito noticed. "What?" he asked. "Drink it. I didn't do anything to it, if that's what you're wondering."

Kakeru wasn't wondering that at all. He turned to the can and played with the snap at the top for a moment, before cracking it open. He didn't sip it, instead opting to stare at the bubbles that fizzed at the surface.

The silence that settled between them unnerved Kakeru. His thoughts got too loud. He was adopted, he wasn't wanted. He was going to be laughed at, his status was gone. He _was_ being laughed at by his company.

He snapped his head over to the one present thing that was causing him more rising stress.

"What?" Kaito asked again, noticing the action.

Kakeru growled angrily, "What do you want? Have you stayed here to laugh at me? To see the strong Tengenji Kakeru, fallen like this because of something?"

Kaito scoffed and turned away, taking a sip of his juice before responding calmly, "Not really. I don't care."

Kakeru's blood boiled.

"It doesn't matter to me what happened to you," Kaito continued without pause, "Just… that you're okay."

Kakeru deflated suddenly. His anger and energy drained away. Kaito's words gave him a strange feeling in his chest. His strong stare on Kaito fell to the dirt in front of him. He let out a long sigh. "...I'll tell you what happened."

Kaito looked over sharply. "Don't-"

"I want to," Kakeru said, interrupting the words that he knew were going to be said. "My father… he spoke with me today and told me… told me that…" he gulped and took a deep breath, "I'm a-adopted."

Kaito's eyes widened, "Y-You?"

Kakeru scowled and his fingers curled tightly around the can still in his hands, "Yes. Me."

"Sorry," Kaito apologized about his tone. "That… well, that shouldn't change you."

Kakeru wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, and looked to the right through the corner of his eye, "Oh yeah?"

Kaito nodded, "Yeah. You've been raised under the Tengenji's as their own." Kaito remarked, "Think about it before you overreact. Was he disowning you?"

Kakeru stopped. His father's words before telling him he was adopted. _I am proud of you_. A warmth flooded through his body. His eyes widened and he gasped.

Kaito raised an eyebrow at him, before letting out a small, yet relieved, smirk, "There's your audacious attitude, like usual."

Kakeru gasped, the light tone lifting his own spirit, "D-Don't talk like you know me! I'm Tengenji Kakeru, if you didn't know!"

Kaito laughed, "You're right." He stood up from the bench, "Now let's go, _Tengenji Kakeru_ , the others were waiting for me before eating dinner." He deadpanned, "Though, I bet Hoshitani's already ate our servings."

Kakeru stared at Kaito. He quickly lifted the can of orange juice to his mouth and gulped it down.

Kaito gave him an exasperated look.

Kakeru finished it and stood, following Kaito to the trash on their way out of the park. "Thank you, Yamamoto," he said quietly, but not without earnesty.

Kaito waved him off, "Forget about it."

Kakeru glanced at the bushes that framed the sidewalk, "Sorry for bringing up… with you…" He left the word _family_ unsaid, but Kaito understood anyways.

Kaito silently turned his head to Kakeru, "...I don't mind if it's for a teammate."

Kakeru blinked, then snickered lowly, "You do care for us, huh, _Kaito-chan_."

Kaito scoffed, "Shut up."

Kakeru suddenly wrapped his arm around Kaito's shoulder tightly, "I appreciate it."

A warm feeling passed between the two. They both felt it, but neither said anything about it.

Kaito pushed away from Kakeru, "Yeah, whatever. Hurry up already."

Kakeru grinned, "Don't tell me what to do, you boor."

 **~0~**

Kaito and Kakeru walked into the common room at the same time, gathering Nayuki, Hoshitani, and Kuga's attention.

"Ah! Yamamoto, you're back! Tengenji, too!" Hoshitani waved.

Nayuki gasped, "Sorry, we started eating without you!"

Kaito waved his hand, going to the sink to wash his hands, "It's fine."

"Did you find your bottle?" Hoshitani asked, continuing with his meal.

"Yeah," Kaito replied, joining them at the table.

Kakeru washed his hands and joined them a moment later.

"Did something happen?" Kuga spoke after Kakeru settled into eating. "You two don't usually come in together like this."

Kaito's eyes flickered down to his hand.

Kakeru took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He looked up at the three of them, "Do you mind if we get through dinner first? I'll tell you all afterwards."

The three of them stopped at Kakeru's polite request, while Kaito continued to chew on his rice.

"O-Oh," Nayuki started, "yes, of course."

Kakeru nodded silently, picking up his next piece of chicken.

The next conversation was mostly Hoshitani and Nayuki speaking, with comments from Kaito and Kuga occasionally.

After their meals were complete, they cleaned up their dishes and settled at the table once more. They all stared seriously at Kakeru.

Kakeru took a deep breath in and out before he spoke. "I spoke with my… father earlier and he gave me some news."

He gulped. Kaito cast him a glance.

Kakeru sniffed tightly, then cried out suddenly, "He told me that I was adopted!"

The three boys jumped in surprise.

Hoshitani reared back, "Adopted?"

"Tengenji-kun?" Nayuki added.

"How…" Kuga muttered.

Kakeru coughed. "He said I was adopted. Then I… left."

Hoshitani softened, "Tengenji…"

Nayuki paused before asking, "Are you okay?"

Kakeru glanced away, "Yeah… I will be."

Hoshitani tapped the table, "Thanks for telling us."

"We'll support you," Kuga added.

Kaito lifted his hand and rested it on Kakeru's shoulder, "You can count on us."

Kakeru glanced down, then nodded, "You guys..." He sighed through his nose, "Don't tell anyone about it, okay? I don't want it to get out until I talk to him again."

Hoshitani nodded, "Of course! We won't let you down."

Kakeru let out a breath of relief, "Thank you."

 **~0~**

The door to the office slid open, "Tengenji-san, your guest is here."

Asahi Tengenji put his papers down, "Oh yes, let him in."

"Yes sir."

The door opened wider, letting in a tall young man.

Asahi stood up, "Tsukigami Haruto-san. It's nice to see you."

Haruto smiled, reaching out to shake his hand over the desk, "Always a pleasure, Tengenji-san."

"Please have a seat," Asahi waved to the seats and the two sat down. "I must say that I was surprised when you wanted to meet with me."

Haruto grinned, "I suppose it was a shock. However, I had something of importance to discuss with you."

Asahi folded his hands together, "Is this about Kakeru?"

Haruto stopped, his eyes widening. He ducked his head, "So you know?"

Asahi hummed, "I am aware of it."

Haruto clenched his fist over his pants, "Then, why… why did you never contact me?"

"I apologize, Haruto-san," Asahi said, "but you are still a child in this world. Even if I had told you, what would you have done? You are but a few years older than Kakeru himself." Asahi stared down the shocked Haruto. "Not many people know this, but I will tell you. My wife was deemed infertile a few months prior to us adopting Kakeru. I needed an heir to the Tengenji family. Kakeru was the child that blessed us with that."

Haruto's heart beat loudly in his chest. "I understand," he whispered. He lifted his head to look at Asahi through his bangs, "But tell me, did you know that Kakeru has a twin brother?"

This time, Asahi's eyes widened. "What?" he gasped.

Haruto slumped down, "Yes. Tsukigami Kakeru and Tsukigami Kaito, were their names." He sighed, "As you said, I'm still a child in the world. That's why it has, regrettably, taken me this long to seek them out after I lost them."

Asahi let out a long breath. "I'm truly sorry, Haruto-san."

Haruto sighed. After a moment he lifted his gaze, "Did you know my parents?"

Asahi hummed, "I was acquainted with them, yes. But it was mostly for social events. While we were both in the same general arts of performing, it was distinct enough for us to not be too personally connected."

Haruto nodded silently. After a moment he spoke again, "Does Kakeru know… about being adopted?"

Asahi hesitated, "In fact, he does. I spoke with him earlier this week about it." He lowered his gaze, "Unfortunately, he ran back to school and has not returned to speak with me. I fear that he is upset with me."

Haruto pressed his lips together in contemplation.

"What are you going to do?" Asahi asked.

"I'll…" Haruto trailed off. "I still need to find Kaito. Then I… I'll bring them together and tell them." He ran a hand through his hair, "After that… I don't know."

"Haruto-san, if there's anything I can do to help, let me know," said Asahi. "I would like to see your family together once again."

Haruto took a deep breath in. "Thank you very much." He added, "Please do not tell Kakeru about me. I would like to think about it a bit more. Find a way to reveal it to him, myself."

Asahi nodded, "Of course. You have met Kakeru before, haven't you?"

Haruto gave a small laugh and nodded, "I have. He worked with his team on my set a while back. I think that makes this more awkward, don't you think?"

"Perhaps," Asahi commented.

"No matter," Haruto shook his head. He stood up, brushing his pants straight. "Thank you for taking care of Kakeru, Tengenji-san. He's in good care with you."

Asahi bowed his head, "I wish you success, Haruto-san."

Haruto nodded, "Me too."

 **~0~**

Haruto pulled up to the address that the GPS led him to. Taking a deep breath, Haruto exit his car and went to the door of the town home.

An elder woman greeted him at the door. "Hello, were you the one who called about Kaito?"

Haruto nodded, "Yes, that is me."

An elderly man came from behind the woman, "Come in, please."

Haruto was welcomed into their pristine home, kept neatly like a puzzle. The woman, Nana, brought tea and cookies before joining the man, Rio, at a couch opposite of Haruto.

"Thank you for your time," Haruto spoke after taking a sip of the tea.

Nana shook her head and grinned, "It's no problem. I'm sure that you are the busy one out of us all."

Haruto laughed.

Rio spoke, "So you wanted to talk about Kaito with us?"

There was something about his tone that made Haruto waver. He trained his next words carefully as he nodded seriously, "Yes. I just… knew his family before they passed and decided that I would try to find him, and see how he is."

"Oh my," Nana softened.

"Well, Kaito isn't living here right now." Rio said, making Haruto raise an eyebrow in confusion. "He got into Ayanagi Academy. That boy, in the musical department, off training and such."

Haruto's heart stopped.

So it was that.

Tengenji Kakeru and Yamamoto Kaito. His brothers.

Oh, what a fool he was.

"Are you alright?" Nana spoke up, noticing Haruto's frozen gaze.

Haruto snapped straight, "A-Ah, yeah… J-Just, what can you tell me about his childhood?" He smiled uneasily.

Rio and Nana shared a look.

"Well," Nana started, "Kaito was a very quiet child. He always did as we said. Stayed wherever he was allowed to with no fuss at all."

Haruto's brows furrowed at her words.

Rio nodded, "He is very shy and silent now, too."

"O-Oh?" Haruto stuttered, thinking about how he saw Kaito with his team on occasion. "And what about his academics? How is he there?"

"He does well," Nana answered again, "always studious where we kept him. His grades now are just as well now, I'm sure."

Haruto frowned, "Do you… not know?"

Nana waved her hand, "Kaito comes back here once in a while, but stays locked up in his room unless it is meal time."

Rio nodded, "That boy is good at following the rules."

"Rules?" Haruto repeated, dread leaking into his chest.

Nana smiled, "Yes. We keep a rule that he's not allowed anywhere in the house except for his room and the restroom unless he has permission."

Haruto's world stopped.

These kind looking elders were hiding a terrible behavior. Kaito had to deal with this. He was locked up in a place where he should have been comfortable.

Haruto clenched his fists tightly. "Then… how long have you had Kaito? What made you want him?"

Rio hummed, "Maybe six years now?"

"My, has it been that long?" Nana smiled. She looked at Haruto, "We never had our own children, so one of our friends suggested that we foster a child. We agreed, and got Kaito."

"I see," Haruto said tightly. "So you got Kaito and you held him in a single room for years?" he clarified.

"Well, we gave him enough in his room. A bed, desk, many toys," Nana spoke. "You're still young so you don't understand, but children are troublesome creatures. We don't want our home to be too chaotic, now."

Haruto grit his teeth, the sweet yet poisonous words stinging him. "Right." He stood up calmly. "I apologize, but it seems that I forgot that I have an appointment that I am running late for."

Both Nana and Rio stared at him in surprise.

"What about Kaito?" Rio asked.

"I'll… go see him at school, if I can," Haruto choked out, "Yamamoto Kaito at Ayanagi Academy, isn't it?"

"Yes…" Rio confirmed.

Haruto nodded, "Thank you. I'll see myself out." He scooted out of the room and without another word, rushed out, got in his car, and drove off. He made it out of the neighborhood and onto the streets, before he had too pull over. He couldn't keep driving after everything he just learned.

Haruto tightly held the steering wheel, resting his head on the bar. His heart beat loudly in his ears and his face tightened, tears slowly streaming out. "I'm sorry, Kaito," he sobbed.

As the tears came down, Haruto wondered if he should call the child welfare system and report the couple. He didn't, only because he wanted to see what Kaito had to say first.

This was it. He had to see his brothers now.

Haruto sighed once more, sliding his phone out. He had to talk this out.

" _What is it?_ " Uozumi's voice came through after the second ring.

Haruto sighed, "You were right. Tengenji Kakeru and Yamamoto Kaito are my brothers."

" _Kaito, too, huh?_ " Uozumi replied calmly. Haruto had already told him about the meeting he had with Tengenji Asahi about Kakeru. " _Why do you sound so down, then? You've found them._ "

Haruto let out a shaky breath, "I just met with the people in charge of Kaito for the past six years. They're terrible."

Uozumi inhaled sharply, " _How so?_ "

"They… they made him stay in a single room. He wasn't allowed in rooms other than his own and maybe the dining space because the couple thought children were troublesome," Haruto spoke slowly.

Uozumi was quiet while he processed the words. " _What the hell. What the hell?_ " he repeated in shock then anger. " _Who lets a child stay with these kind of people? Haru, I swear, if you aren't reporting them right now, I will._ "

Haruto managed a soft chuckle, "You really have a soft spot for Kaito, huh, Uozumi?"

" _Haru…_ " Uozumi deadpanned.

"Sorry," Haruto said, "I thought about it. But, just in case, I would like to talk to Kaito about it first. I don't want it to get worse without knowing his side."

Uozumi groaned, " _There's your righteousness. Fine! Have at it!_ "

Haruto sighed nervously.

" _So what's your plan now?_ " Uozumi asked.

Haruto leaned back in his seat. "I don't know. I… need a few days to process. I'll think of something in the meantime."

Uozumi hummed, " _Okay. Tell me when you come up with something._ "

"Yeah," Haruto answered and ended the call.

He took a final deep breath. He really needed to sort out his thoughts and figure something out.

 **~0~**

Kakeru took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

"Enter," came a moment later.

He pushed the door open, "Otou-san? May I have a moment?"

His father looked at him, "Of course."

Kakeru slipped inside and sat in front of the man. He shifted uneasily in the silence, before speaking. "I apologize for my behavior the other day," he said. He bowed his head, "Thank you… for everything."

"Kakeru, of course," Asahi said.

Kakeru straightened up, his expression still solemn.

Asahi took one look, "I suppose you want to ask about your family."

Kakeru stiffened, then slumped, "Yes sir…"

Asahi smiled slightly, "Your real parents passed when you were about one and a half. You were adopted soon after, by us."

Kakeru nodded, absorbing the words. "Is that… all? What were their names?"

Asahi paused, thinking about his meeting with Haruto. He nodded, "Yes. There are more things that will be revealed to you as time comes."

Kakeru blinked, "Huh?"

Asahi ducked his head, "As I said, when time comes."

Kakeru grew shocked, anger also rising, "Otou-san!"

"I'm sorry, Kakeru," Asahi spoke, "but you must understand." He paused, "You are dismissed."

Kakeru bit his lip, and angrily stood up, existing the room.

Asahi sighed as the door slammed shut. He managed to anger him once again.

 **~0~**

"Huh?" Hoshitani blinked, staring at the envelope in his hands.

It had come under his name from the school mail, which was strange because most students never got anything through the school.

He read the envelope, which only had his name and no return label. As he turned to leave, he almost ran into a figure.

"Oh!" Hoshitani gasped, "Excuse me!"

"It's okay," Tatsumi smiled.

"Tatsumi!" Hoshitani grinned, "What are you doing here?"

Tatsumi nodded to the desk behind him, "I was told that I had a letter."

"Oh," Hoshitani awed, "me too!" He flapped his envelope at the teen.

"Well that's strange," Tatsumi commented about the coincidence as he fetched his own letter. He looked at it oddly, "Huh, I don't have a return address."

Hoshitani gasped, holding his envelope up against Tatsumi's. They shared a look. "It's the same handwriting!" Hoshitani cried.

In a moment the two simultaneously opened the letters, pulling out a neatly written invitation card.

"You and your team," Hoshitani read.

"Have been invited to an afternoon with," Tatsumi continued.

"Tsukigami Haruto!" Hoshitani gasped.

The two boys exchanged gazes.

Tatsumi blinked, "Wow. I can't believe Tsukigami Haruto invited us."

Hoshitani's eyes sparkled, "I know right? Isn't this amazing? The others are going to be so excited!"

Tatsumi nodded, "I wonder what he invited us for."

"Yeah!" Hoshitani agreed.

The two team leaders went back to the dorms together, finding their teammates in the common room.

"Everyone!" Hoshitani cried as he entered, Tatsumi close behind. "Great news!"

"Hoshitani-kun?" Nayuki gasped, "What happened?"

Hoshitani flapped the letter in the air.

"Hey, hold it still," Kaito scoffed.

Tatsumi lifted his own paper, "I got one, too."

"Huh? What's it about?" Ugawa asked impatiently.

Kuga stood and took the paper from Hoshitani, beginning to read it.

They stared at him, expecting him to read it out loud, but he simply passed the paper back to Hoshitani after reading it himself.

They deadpanned.

"Anyways," Tatsumi turned away, "both of our teams have been invited to an outing by Tsukigami Haruto."

"No way," Toraishi gawked.

"We were invited?" Sawatari repeated.

"That's what it says!" Hoshitani confirmed, as Tatsumi passed his letter to his teammate.

The room filled with chatter between the teams in excitement.

Hoshitani spared a glance to Kakeru. The redhead was in an off mood once again for the past few days, and no one on the team could figure out why or how to make him feel better because nothing worked. Now, however, he seemed to be engaging with Nayuki about something. Hoshitani let out a slight sigh.

"Tengenji?" came a voice closer than Hoshitani was prepared for.

He yelped, jumping back.

Kuga blinked, "Sorry."

Hoshitani laughed nervously, "You're fine, just surprised me." He looked down at the letter, "But yeah. I hope he'll feel better with this."

Kuga nodded, "We all do."

They were interrupted when Hoshitani was asked about the details of the event. He answered, full of hope for the chance encounter.

 **~0~**

A group of ten boys entered the ice cream shop.

Kakeru looked around, "You sure this was the place?"

Hoshitani nodded, "Yeah, this is the address."

"It is," Tatsumi added.

Inumine was already singing about ice cream and twirling around the shop.

A hard to notice figure at the counter turned at the commotion. He lifted a hand, "Yo, everyone."

"Tsukigami-san!"

Haruto waved his hand down, his fedora and tinted glasses bobbing with him, "Hello. Keep it down, though." He waved to the counter where all the ice cream was displayed, "Why don't you all get something? My treat."

Nayuki fumbled, "No way! We couldn't do that!"

Inumine and Ugawa were at the counter in a moment.

"Birthday cake and rainbow ice cream, please!"

"Vanilla and cookie dough here," Ugawa said.

Nayuki gawked, "What- Ugawa-kun?"

Ugawa shrugged, "He said he'll cover us, so why not?"

Haruto waved his hand to the worker, "Put it all together, please."

"Okay," the worker called back, already scooping Inumine's choices.

Haruto nodded to the boys, "The rest of you get your choices, too."

The others glanced at each other, before giving in and standing in line.

Haruto got up after Hoshitani was the last to get his treat, and glanced over the choices of the others, specifically at two of them.

Coffee and vanilla, and strawberry and vanilla.

Haruto pursed his lips together, holding back a laugh as he asked, "Two scoops of coffee and strawberry, please."

Hoshitani looked over, "That's a weird choice."

Haruto smiled, "I've never had it together before, but I feel like trying it today."

Team Ootori surrounded him as Haruto was given his bowl. He picked some of both of the flavors and scooped it into his mouth in one fell swoop.

"H-How is it?" Nayuki asked.

Haruto tasted the bitter and sweet flavors swirling in his mouth. "They're complete opposites but it feels like they were made to be together."

Hoshitani blinked, "Huh? Really? I kinda want to try it now!"

" _Shh,_ Hoshitani-kun!" Nayuki whispered sharply, bobbing his head towards Haruto, reminding Hoshitani about who was paying for their treats.

Hoshitani stiffened as he remembered, "N-No! I'm not serious! Next time! When I pay for myself! I will!"

Haruto laughed, "I won't mind if you want it."

"No sir! Thank you very much!"

"Alright," Haruto conceded, he waved them away. "Go sit down while I settle this."

"Yes sir," Hoshitani bowed quickly, leading his team to a back table where team Hiiragi was already gathered around.

After Haruto joined them at the tables that were combined in order to accommodate them all, Tatsumi glanced at their host.

"Thank you for inviting us and all," he said, "but was there a reason for it?"

Haruto smiled, "Not really. I thought some time with the students of my students would be fitting. Also, you all did a great show during _Shadow and Lights_."

"Oh." Tatsumi hummed.

"Thank you!" Hoshitani grinned, "But you won't believe what happened!" He continued to tell the tale of his injury.

The teams continued chatting about various topics for a while, until Sawatari looked at the time.

"Everyone," he said, "we have practice soon."

"Oh right," Ugawa hummed, leaning his face into his hand.

Toraishi stretched his back out, "I forgot about that."

"Me too!" Inumine shouted.

Tatsumi stood up, "We'll take our leave. Thank you, again, for having us. We enjoyed it."

"Don't worry about it," Haruto answered. "Thank you for coming."

The two teams bid farewell and separated.

"We should go too, shouldn't we?" Kuga pondered out loud.

"Probably…" Nayuki hummed shyly.

Hoshitani nodded, "Yeah. Thank you for inviting us, too, Haruto-san!"

"Like I said, it's no problem," Haruto smiled.

The boys started gathering themselves up, thanking Haruto for his treatment again.

"Just a moment," Haruto suddenly stopped, getting their attention again. He shifted slightly, his posture shaking under the pressure of what his intentions were. He kept it hidden under his usual facade of confidence, one that none of the boys noticed. "Tengenji, Yamamoto, do you have a few more minutes to spare?"

The boys looked in surprise. Kakeru and Kaito glanced between each other, then at the rest of the team.

Hoshitani shrugged at the two, leaving it up to the two to decide.

"...Sure," Kakeru answered, looking back at Haruto.

Kaito nodded once in agreement.

Haruto let out a breath and smiled, "Great. Thank you."

The boys shared confused gazes once again.

Hoshitani started stepping away, "Okay then. The rest of us will be off. See you guys later."

Nayuki and Kuga waved as they left Kakeru and Kaito with Haruto.

Haruto picked up his trash and his shoulder bag, heading to the bin to toss the paper out. He glanced back at the two who were still standing around the shop in confusion. "Come on, let's get out of here."

Haruto led them out to the streets, where he took the lead as Kakeru and Kaito were trailing behind.

"Are you two hungry?" Haruto asked, looking over at a food stand on the side of the street, "Do you want to get some food?"

"Ah… no thanks," Kaito said, awkwardly glancing around. "The ice cream was enough."

Kakeru nodded with Kaito, then pursed his lips, "No offense, but, could you just tell us what you wanted to say? It's obvious that there's something."

"Yeah," Kaito agreed, "or else you wouldn't have set this whole thing up just to talk to us."

Haruto stopped walking. He turned slowly to face the two, giving a soft smile, "Ah, you two are really sharp."

Kakeru let out a puff of air as he crossed his arms, "Geez. I can't believe you actually admit to it."

Haruto sighed, "Let's find somewhere to sit down."

Kakeru and Kaito glanced at each other uneasily, but followed.

Haruto found an empty table at a quiet place near a small park and sat down, Kakeru and Kaito sitting across him.

Haruto folded his hands together and rested them on the table.

"What is this really about, Tsukigami-san?" Kakeru asked impatiently.

Haruto pulled up his bag, taking out three file folders and placing them in front of him. He then pulled off both his glasses and hat. "To be honest with you both, I have some news to tell you."

"News?" Kaito repeated, frowning.

"What kind of news?" Kakeru pressed.

"Excuse me for being blunt," Haruto said first, his face dropping the smile it was carrying earlier, "but Yamamoto, you are an orphan, aren't you?"

Kaito stiffened, taking a sharp breath.

Kakeru gawked at Haruto's sudden words, looking at Kaito for his reaction. He was going to say something about the audacious question, but was interrupted.

"And Kakeru," Haruto turned to look at him, his face emotionless now, "you were adopted at a young age, correct?"

Kakeru froze.

Kaito's gaze snapped to him this time.

"How…" Kakeru started softly, growing angry, "how do you know that?" he growled. "The only ones who know are my teammates and none of them have any contact with you!"

Haruto nodded, unfazed by the shouting, "You're right. It wasn't through your team that I learned, but rather, by your father."

Kakeru reeled back, his anger quelling, "My father?"

Haruto nodded again.

"What does it matter?" Kaito interrupted sharply.

Haruto pressed his fingers together to delay his answer. "How much do you know about me?"

"About you?" Kakeru snapped back harshly. "You're the number one youngest musical star out there right now."

Haruto said, "Yes, that's true. But do you know anything about… well, my family? My past?"

Kaito scowled, thinking about it. He suddenly lifted his gaze to Haruto, "You… you're an orphan too."

Kakeru's eyes widened in realization as well.

Haruto dipped his head, "Yes. Good, you know." He shuffled the files slightly. "My parents died in a car crash when I was six years."

"Sorry," Kakeru stated simply, still on edge.

"It's okay," Haruto shook his head. "I was left alone as a single orphan." He paused, lifting a finger as he added, "At least, that's how the media knows it."

Both Kaito and Kakeru paused at his words and tone.

"What… do you mean?" Kakeru asked quietly, growing more and more confused along with Kaito.

Haruto folded his hands together, "Very few people know, but I had two very young siblings before my parents passed. Unfortunately, we were split up because we were deemed too young to stay together." He let out a deep breath, peeling open one of his files, "My brothers, they were twins." Haruto slipped out an image and flipped it over to the two. The image revealed two small babies, one with blue hair and the other with red, and a blue haired child in the center. "Their names were Tsukigami Kakeru and Tsukigami Kaito."

Both boys reared back, their gazes wide with shock.

"What?" Kaito gasped.

"What are you saying?" Kakeru gawked, his brows furring.

Haruto gulped. This was the moment for him. He inhaled deeply through his nose. He pressed his shaking hands down into the tabletop as he said, "...You two are Tsukigami Kakeru and Tsukigami Kaito."

A silence came over them as they stared at Haruto incredulously.

"How can you say that?" Kakeru growled suddenly, slamming his palms down on the table.

"I'm not basing this on assumptions," Haruto said calmly against his outrage, "I searched to find you two. I had to make sure that I wouldn't judge you simply based on your names." He slid one of the folders forward, "This is everything that proves what I'm saying." He slid another one in front of Kakeru and the other to Kaito, "These are each of your cases. Birth certificate, adoption papers, everything."

"Why?" Kakeru exhaled.

Haruto took a breath, "I would like… for us to get along with each other. As... a family. We've been apart for too long."

Silence found them again, none of them speaking, only hearing Haruto's words echo in the air around them.

Kakeru suddenly stood, the table shaking at his force and getting Haruto's and Kaito's eyes on him. "I need to think about this," he said gruffly, not bothering to take the files laid out in front of him.

Haruto swiped his hand out and grabbed Kakeru's wrist before the teen could step away. He looked up pleadingly, "Just take a look at it, please. I put my contact information in, if you want to talk to me about anything."

Kakeru glared at Haruto, staring into his desolate eyes. He finally snatched up the two files with his free hand, "Fine."

Haruto relaxed and carefully released his grasp.

Kakeru yanked his arm back and stomped away before he could be stopped again.

Kaito quietly stood up himself as soon as Kakeru disappeared. He didn't say a word as he picked up his own file and walked away without a glance at Haruto.

Haruto held his breath as he watched the two walk away on separate paths, not even acknowledging each other.

His eyes shut and he cradled his head in his lap, the stress of the situation getting to him. What did he expect, anyways? He knew about the two's existence since the beginning, so seeing them was of no shock. Of course it wasn't the same for them.

It was very possible that it was Kaito's first time even hearing about his real family. Haruto couldn't read the boy's emotions as he was much more silent in his reactions than Kakeru was.

With Kakeru, on the other hand, he was much more loud and angry. He grew up knowing that he was a Tengenji, until very recently when it was shaken.

Haruto had to burst into their worlds and shake it again; just so he could be with them. Oh, he was so selfish.

 **~0~**

Hoshitani was returning to the common room, when he saw a figure coming down the hallway.

After returning from their outing with Haruto, they had enjoyed their evening without Kakeru and Kaito and had dinner without them as well.

Kakeru was heading down the hall to get to his room with some folder in his hand.

"Oh Tengenji," Hoshitani smiled and waved, "you're back."

Tengenji didn't bother to look up, simply passing the leader. "Yeah," he muttered, disappearing around the corner.

Hoshitani blinked in shock. The was very unusual behavior for Kakeru. The wonder of what could have happened creeped in on his mind, before he remembered about Kaito, and where he could have been.

Carefully, Hoshitani entered the common room, where Nayuki was watching something on his phone.

"I just saw Tengenji in the hallway," Hoshitani jerked a thumb backwards.

Nayuki looked up, "He's back? Is he hungry?"

Hoshitani hummed, "I don't know. But he… looked troubled."

Nayuki halted, "A-Again?"

Hoshitani plopped down on the bench and gave a long sigh, "Tengenji must be going through some crazy things if he's been upset for so long… and here I thought this little trip with Tsukigami-san would cheer him up, too."

Nayuki nodded in solemn agreement. He paused then added, "Where's Yamamoto-kun?"

A voice came from the doorway, "He just made it back to our room."

"Kuga-kun!" Nayuki gasped.

"He looked unsettled," Kuga added, coming over to the table.

"Yamamoto too?" Hoshitani gaped. "Tengenji looked kinda mad in the hallway when I just saw him."

The three mulled over it.

Nayuki gasped suddenly, "You don't think-"

Hoshitani's brows furred, linking the thought with his own, "Tsukigami-san-"

"-Did something?" Kuga completed, plainly, but his face dipped into a frown.

"W-What could have happened?" Nayuki pondered.

"We can't…" Hoshitani trailed off. "We don't know if it was that. We should just ask them! Yeah!"

"Hoshitani-kun," Nayuki interrupted, "Tengenji-kun and Yamamoto-kun aren't really the types to just tell us, are they?"

"We can try," Kuga concurred with Hoshitani.

With that said, Hoshitani promptly marched the three of them to Kakeru's room first, where he pounded on the door.

There wasn't a single sound in response.

Hoshitani slammed his fist on the door again, "Tengenji, I know you're in there!"

"What do you want, you boor?" Kakeru's angry voice leaked through rapidly.

The three exchanged glances at the form of communication.

"We just want to know how you're feeling," Nayuki said nervously.

Kakeru was quiet for a moment. "I'm fine! Leave me alone!"

Hoshitani's question came out gently, "Was it Tsukigami-san?"

"We can take care of it," Kuga stated, holding his fists up.

"There's nothing to take care of, you boors!" Kakeru cried through quickly. "Leave me!"

Hoshitani sent Nayuki and Kuga a helpless look. Neither had a response to help him. Hoshitani sighed, slumping his shoulders, "Alright, Tengenji. We hope you get better soon…"

He led them away from Kakeru's room, until they reached Kuga and Kaito's shared room, where Kuga entered without concern.

Kaito was sitting at his desk with earbuds in his ears that were blasting music loud enough for them to hear from the door.

Kuga sighed and stomped forward, plucking the buds out by the wire hanging in front of him.

Kaito snapped his head up from the closed file that sat in front of him to Kuga. His face morphed into a scowl.

"Listening to loud music can damage your ears," Kuga remarked.

Kaito snatched the buds from him. "Thanks for the advice," he said, heavy with sarcasm.

Nayuki and Hoshitani glanced nervously at each other.

When Kuga didn't step away, Kaito deliberately lowered the volume. He then glanced back at Hoshitani and Nayuki with the same scowl. "What do you guys want?" he said as he turned back at his phone.

"We want to know what happened," Hoshitani stated firmly, his fists forming in front of him with determination.

Nayuki nodded at the blue haired teen's back, "You and Tengenji-kun are acting weird… Was it something with Tsukigami-san?"

Kaito visibly stiffened in front of them after Nayuki addressed both males' names.

"No," Kaito quipped, "It was nothing. Don't concern yourselves."

Hoshitani let out an annoyed whine, "We just want to help you guys!"

"Well you're not!" Kaito shouted back, whirling around to face them. "You don't know anything about us!"

The room went silent.

"...Us?" Hoshitani repeated.

Kaito's eyes shot wide. He clenched his jaw shut and snapped his face away.

Kuga eyed his posture then spoke into the silence that blanketed them, "We won't bother you two anymore. Sorry."

Hoshitani gasped at the teen's decision, "Wait-"

Kuga shoved his hand over Hoshitani's mouth and pushed him out of the room.

Nayuki waved his arms in a flustered manner. "S-Sorry!" he apologized, rushing out of the room and slamming the door shut behind them, leaving Kaito alone in the bedroom.

Hoshitani frowned at Kuga in the common room, where they reconvened, "What was that for, Kuga?"

Kuga looked at his hands, "Let's not bother them."

Nayuki's face fell.

Hoshitani clenched his teeth in frustration, "I hate seeing them like this."

"Me too…" Nayuki added.

"All we can do now," Kuga spoke over the silence that lapsed over them, "is give them time and hope things get better."

 **~0~**

Time didn't help them at all. If anything, things in team Ootori felt worse than ever before.

Kaito and Kakeru constantly refused to speak, look at, or even acknowledge each other no matter what the circumstance was. Even in private, neither would speak the others name.

Every night, Hoshitani, Nayuki, and Kuga gathered in the common room or Hoshitani and Nayuki's room to speak about it. But they had no idea about what to do. Both boys refused to speak to anyone about whatever was the matter.

"Maybe they need to talk to each other?" Nayuki had suggested.

But that was an impossible task, considering the two in question refused to glance at each other. If they were in the same room, they were on opposite ends.

The other teams and students had clearly noticed. Tatsumi and Sawatari had talked to Hoshitani about it, and admit that they couldn't figure anything out from their middle school friend either.

Presently, Nayuki's words repeated in Hoshitani's head as he chewed on some carrot sticks while distractedly scrolling though some practice advice blog on his phone in the common room alone.

Kakeru suddenly walked in, a folder in his hand. "Oh, Hoshitani," he greeted, getting Hoshitani to glance up. He held the cream colored folder out to Hoshitani, "Do you mind giving this to… Yamamoto for me? He'll know what it is."

Hoshitani blinked. Anger rose in him suddenly. The two wouldn't talk to each other, and now they wanted to use him as a delivery boy? Hoshitani raised his hand to knock the folder back against Kakeru. "No way! Do it yourself!" he shouted, slamming his hand down on the table.

Kakeru stepped back awkwardly, "...Okay, geez." He twisted away giving Hoshitani a strange look as he went, "No need to get all mad, you boor."

Hoshitani panted for his breath as Kakeru disappeared. He blinked, confused about the encounter. "What."

Kakeru turned the corner and found himself in front of a door. There was no way that he could knock on it or enter, not with how things were between them right now. It wasn't that he couldn't face Kaito; it was that he didn't know how to. The tension that grew exponentially between them was impacting their team performance, and he was aware of it. In honesty, it hurt that one of the members of his team that he enjoyed spending time with was the one that he was too anxious to deal with.

The file he held in his hand alone proved that so much between them was different now, or rather, the same. The same parents, the same blood, the same brother.

They were twins.

Yet Kakeru couldn't face him. He was a coward.

Kakeru lifted one end of the folder, glancing at the contents a final time from the countless times he looked at it over the last few days.

The information proved that they were twins, Kakeru himself being the older one by a few minutes.

He sighed softly. Kaito deserved to see this information too. Getting down to his knees, Kakeru pushed the folder to slide it through the crack of the door.

But it suddenly pulled back, opening.

Kakeru snapped his head up.

Kaito froze as he spotted Kakeru on the ground.

The two blinked at each other.

Kakeru jumped back, landing on his bottom, "S-Sorry! I was just-" he turned his head away, holding the folder up, "I was getting this to you. It's the other folder of papers that Tsukigami-san gave us."

"Oh," Kaito said, carefully taking the file from him, "thanks… I guess."

Kakeru bit his lip, nodding as he stood. "Yeah…"

Kaito backed up, letting Kakeru dust himself off as he stood again. Kaito was face to face with Kakeru. The two stood in silence, avoiding eye contact.

Finally, Kakeru sighed. If literally bumping into each other was what made them face each other, then so be it. "Listen… we need to talk."

Kaito hummed.

Kakeru shoved his hands into his pockets to play off his nerves. "Do you have time now?"

"Yeah," Kaito admitted. "Let's go to the roof."

That set, the two climbed the stairs, ending up on the concrete covered roof of the dorm building that had a slight view of the city far away.

Kakeru went to the guard rails and leaned against it, while Kaito stood away, flipping through the file that Kakeru had just passed to him.

Silence overcame the both of them again, the sounds of the wind and students chatting from the ground washing over them a few times.

"So…" Kakeru mumbled, "we're related."

"Twins," Kaito supplied from his reading.

Kakeru gulped, "Yeah."

"Our parents were Tsukigami Daichi and Minami. Our brother is Tsukigami Haruto," Kaito spelled out from behind Kakeru, "Which makes us Tsukigami Kakeru and-" he choked on his words, "Tsukigami Kaito."

Kakeru closed his eyes. "Yeah." He gulped before saying, "Things just got really weird. We should decide what to do about it... together." Kakeru let out a frustrated groan and pushed a hand through his bangs, "I don't know what to say. I don't know how to move forward with this information." He dropped the hand, letting it hang off the railing, "I guess… what do you want to do? I suppose we could continue like… normal-" his throat tightened as he continued, "f-forget this was brought up by Tsukigami-san at all. Or we could… I don't know, try to be b-brothers."

Kakeru squeezed his eyes shut again, "All of us, with Hoshitani and the others, we've gotten pretty close. So, I suppose that if I had to admit it, it wouldn't be too wild for me to imagine you as my brother… th-that is if you want to." Kakeru stopped, letting his words ring through the air before he realized that he hadn't heard a sound from Kaito. He turned around to face the other boy.

Kaito stood still, his arm with the file hanging limply between his fingers and his face downcast.

Kakeru's eyes widened, "Wh-What's wrong?"

"My entire life," Kaito began softly, "family was a hard topic for me. I couldn't talk about it to anyone. That is, until I joined team Ootori. Hoshitani and everyone, made it easier for me to handle. But now," his body tensed, his free hand forming a fist, "my real family has been revealed to me and… and…" Kaito trailed off, his body shaking as he lifted his arm over half of his face. He looked up at Kakeru, fat tears blooming in his eyes, "I don't want to be alone anymore."

Kakeru's breath hitched in his throat and his own eyes burned. He didn't know what to say as the tears streamed silently down Kaito's face. Kakeru wiped his own eyes free from the welling tears and stood up straight to step in front of Kaito. "We won't be."

Kaito stared at Kakeru with wide eyes, then nodded once, letting his head duck down again while he wiped his face a final time. He sighed, lifting himself up again, "Let's not be awkward about it."

"We'll do it our way," Kakeru nodded with resolve. He spread his arms out wide in the open air. "We're stardust, you know! When we collide, nothing can stop us!"

Kaito held onto the words for a moment, then nodded firmly. He settled contently, then glanced at the door, "What should we do about the others? They're getting too nosy."

Kakeru sighed exaggeratedly, "What could we have expected from them, to be honest?"

"So, how should we break it to them?" Kaito questioned.

The two shared a look. A spark passed between them.

"A trick?" Kakeru suggested with a smirk.

"Agreed," Kaito grinned.

 **~0~**

Nayuki hummed lightly as he stepped down the hallway. As he neared the corner, he saw the door to Kakeru's room was open and heard his voice leaking out into the hall.

"-Be back in a little bit, after I finish this job."

Nayuki carefully stepped to the doorway and peeked inside, finding Kakeru dressed with a helmet and wrapping bandages around his hands. He blinked, "Tengenji-kun? What are you doing?"

Kakeru looked away from Tavian to address Nayuki. "Oh, Nayuki. I'm going to see Yamamoto."

Nayuki's eyes lit up, "Really? Are you two talking?"

Kakeru nodded, stepping past Nayuki into the hall, "More or less. We're going to meet in the practice room and fight."

Nayuki froze, "F-F-Fight?"

"Yes," Kakeru confirmed. "Sorry, but I have to be off."

Nayuki watched with wide eyes as Kakeru strutted away.

How had this situation escalated to such? He could imagine the two butting heads suddenly from running into each other around a corner, which spiraled up into a shouting match and a declaration of a fight. Now the two were going to face each other in a fist fight! This was bad!

Nayuki took off in a run down the hall. He flew into the common room, where he luckily found Hoshitani sitting with Kuga. "Big trouble!"

Hoshitani jumped, startled, "What's wrong?"

"I just saw Tengenji-kun and he said he was going to fight Yamamoto-kun right now!"

"A fight?" Kuga repeated.

"His hands were wrapped for fighting!" Nayuki said, holding his own fists up in demonstration.

Hoshitani's eyes went wide, "We can't let that happen! Where are they going?"

Nayuki provided, "He said in the practice hall!"

Hoshitani scrambled out of his seat, "We need to go! Kuga!"

Kuga followed suit, "Yeah."

Together the three rushed out of the dorms and found themselves in their usual practice hall.

Kuga slammed the double doors open, expecting to find a face off between the two stubborn members of their team.

Instead, they were met with a dark room. The room was as vacant and spotless as when they had left it last time.

"W-What?" Nayuki gasped.

"Nayuki… are you sure Tengenji said they were going to be in here?" Hoshitani asked with worry.

Nayuki nodded quickly.

Kuga trailed the room, looking around.

Suddenly, a sliding sound was heard and a light flooded into the room from the right side. The window revealed two figures standing outside.

"I told you it wouldn't take them long," Kakeru stated.

Kaito crossed his arms, "Of course."

The three in the hall stared, baffled.

"Wait," Hoshitani gaped, "wait, what? We thought you were fighting!"

"That's what you get for assuming things, you boors!" Kakeru called as he jumped inside through the window.

Nayuki's jaw dropped, "But- you two- you tricked us?"

Kaito climbed into the hall behind Kakeru, closing the window up as Kuga turned the lights on. "Yes."

"Why?" Hoshitani wailed. "Was it all a trick? You two are cruel!"

Kakeru snickered, "Actually it was real. Tricking Nayuki was the only fake thing."

"But, we have to tell you all some things," Kaito said, stepping forward. "You might need to sit down."

The three warily settled on the raised stage and listened as Kakeru and Kaito explained their full story.

By the end, the three were shocked, to say the least.

Hoshitani's gaze was wide as he stared between Kaito and Kakeru. "You two, twins?"

"Amazing," Kuga commented.

"It sounds like a fairy tale," Nayuki gawked.

Kuga nodded, "Yeah, but you two have had a strange connection at times."

Hoshitani agreed quickly, "It's true. It's surprising, but it's good news, isn't it?"

Kakeru and Kaito nodded.

"So what are you going to do now?" Nayuki asked.

Kakeru and Kaito glanced at each other.

Kakeru pressed his lips together, "Well, I guess we should tell, uh… Tsukigami-san, about what happened."

Kaito nodded, "In the meantime, let's keep this on the down-low."

Hoshitani lifted a hand into a salute, "Got it, twins!"

"Twins?" Kakeru deadpanned, "What kind of a salute is that?"

Hoshitani deflated and let out a nervous laugh, "Well, I don't actually know what to call you two as twins. I mean, shouldn't your last name be _Tsukigami_?"

Kakeru and Kaito shared a concerned look.

"We… we'll figure it out," Kaito stated firmly.

"Until then," Kakeru said, pointing to their leader, "make sure you keep your lips shut, Hoshitani!"

"Yes sir! I won't let you down!" Hoshitani cried.

Nayuki laughed, "We're glad to have you two back!"

 **~0~**

Kakeru leaned forward in his seat, his phone on in his hand. "Are you ready?"

Kaito had his legs pulled up under him as he relaxed against the wall on Kakeru's bed, carefully petting Tavian. "Yeah."

Kakeru nodded and pressed the large green circle on the center of the screen under the name " _Tsukigami Haruto_."

It rang twice, before a voice greeted, " _Hello?_ "

Kakeru cleared his throat, "Yes, uh, Tsukigami-san?"

" _Oh, Tengenji!_ " Haruto recognized, " _How are you?_ _Have you any news for me?_ "

"Yeah…" Kakeru said, "Yamamoto is here too."

"Hello," Kaito piped in.

" _Ah! Hello!_ " Haruto said cheerfully. " _I'm glad to hear from you two together,_ " he admit.

Kakeru nodded despite not being seen, "We came up with a decision."

" _Yes?_ " Haruto urged.

Kaito and Kakeru shared a glance.

"We would," Kaito began, "like to get along... as a family."

They could hear Haruto inhale deeply, " _...You don't know how happy that makes me._ " He let out a breathy laugh, " _Let's spend some time together. This weekend, if you want to meet up with me, we can talk_."

"That works," Kakeru conceded.

" _Perfect,_ " Haruto replied, " _Tengenji, I'm guessing this is your cell phone number? I can send the address to you._ "

"Oh, yeah, that's fine," Kakeru answered.

" _Good,_ " Haruto said, " _I'm glad. We'll see each other later, but in the meantime, try to get along._ "

"Uh…" Kaito hummed, "okay."

" _Ah, and you send me a text, too, Yamamoto. I want to make sure I have your number, too,_ " Haruto added. " _Then, I'll see you two later._ "

"Bye," Kakeru called, ending the phone call. A moment later, an address popped up in his messages. He glanced at it, "I guess this is where he wants to meet."

"What is it?" Kaito asked, sending his text to Haruto as he said to.

Kakeru searched the address and blinked at the result, "It's a house."

Kaito looked up at him, "His house, perhaps?"

"What else?" Kakeru retorted, standing up from his chair. "Well, I'm going to get ready for bed."

Kaito nodded, climbing off the bed, "Yeah, I'll go then. Thanks for letting me in."

Kakeru scoffed, lightly punching the other teen on the shoulder, "Where else would we have gone?"

A spark flit between them.

They stopped.

Kaito slowly spoke, "Do you… feel that, too?"

Kakeru paused, "That sort of weird energy?" Kaito nodded. "Yes, I do," Kakeru answered.

Kaito sighed, "Oh. I only get it with you, I've noticed."

Kakeru nodded, then shrugged, "I guess it's some special power we have."

"It's pretty useless, then," Kaito commented, heading to the door.

"What?" Kakeru gawked, "No it's not!"

"What am I going to do by feeling you?" Kaito retorted. "Like I said, useless."

"Excuse me, you boor?" Kakeru cried, "I'm a great person to feel!"

Kaito burst out into laughter as he opened the door. He waved a hand back at Kakeru, "Okay, goodnight."

Kakeru shared the laugh, "Night."

After a hectic and emotional day, the two newly reformed family members needed their best rest.

 **~0~**

"Is this it?" Kaito asked, looking up at the modest sized home.

Kakeru nodded, "Should be."

The two stepped up to the doorway, where it swung open before they even reached it.

Haruto grinned wide, "Welcome! Come on in!"

The surprised two slowly entered, slipping their shoes off at the entrance.

"What is this place, by the way?" Kakeru asked, "Your house?"

"Yeah," Haruto nodded, "it's our home!"

"Our?" Kaito repeated.

"This is where you two spent the first year of life," Haruto stated.

Both boys froze, staring into the depths of the home.

Haruto smiled, "Let me show you around. Let's go upstairs first." He silently climbed the stairs, leading the twins upstairs. He stopped at the first door on the right. "This was our room," he said before opening the door.

The room revealed light blue colored walls and two cribs next to each other at the center of the room. A changing table, dresser, and toy bins were framed around the walls.

"The three of us shared it for the time that… we were together. Eventually I moved out. All of your baby things are still in here, though," Haruto spoke as he let them wander inside.

Kakeru stepped over to the cribs, gazing at the neatly kept sheets. Kaito wandered to the side, where there was a bookshelf full of books and toys. A blue toy car and a pair of red toy trains sat on the top. Above the shelf, photos were neatly hanging on the wall. He stared at each of them.

Haruto watched them. "You two don't remember anything, do you?"

The two looked up and stared at him silently.

Kakeru joined Kaito to look at the frames on the wall. "I don't recall anything."

"Me neither," Kaito added.

Haruto sighed but nodded, "I figured." Instead, he pointed to an image on the wall, where there were two babies in matching green onesies and a child Haruto in a matching style sweater, with presents around them and a tree behind them. "This was our second Christmas together." Haruto smiled, pointing at the toys on the top of the bookshelf, "Those were the toys that you two got, actually. You both loved them so much that neither of you could go a minute without them." He proceeded to go into the tale of the photo.

Kakeru picked up a frame that sat on top of the dresser. It was the blue haired baby who looked around 9 months old, sitting on a high chair with tears in his eyes and red cheeks. He snickered at the expression, "And what's going on here? Yama-" Kakeru stopped suddenly.

Haruto stepped up from behind, checking the image, "Oh, this one?" He grinned, "Actually, Tou-san was playing with him here. He was hungry for his milk, but we kept tricking him with the empty bottle instead of the full one." A laugh escaped him, "Kaito was such a sensitive baby."

Kaito stepped up beside him and frowned at the story. "That's not a funny thing to do to a baby," he commented with a huff.

Haruto only laughed more.

"Kaito."

Kaito blinked, lifting his with surprise at Kakeru's serious tone.

"Your name…" Kakeru continued, not looking up from the photo that he held. "We should… go by our first names. Calling each other by last name would be weird now, wouldn't it?" he spoke softly.

Haruto hummed, "That's true."

Kaito was silent, until he nodded, "Okay, Kakeru."

Kakeru finally looked up at Kaito, and the two shared a smile.

Haruto took a deep breath in. He put his arms around the two teens, pushing himself in the middle with a wide grin, "Kaito! Kakeru! Just call me _Nii-san_!"

Kakeru clicked his tongue, turning his head to hide his burning cheeks, "When have you been so comfortable?"

"Actually, I've always referred to you two by first name," Haruto admit with a soft smile. "It's only up until now that I called you by your last names, so that you wouldn't be uncomfortable."

"Makes sense, I guess," Kaito commented. He sniffed suddenly, a rich and dark scent wafting around them, "What's that smell?"

Haruto stepped away, "Oh that! I'm cooking a special lunch for us!"

"Is it burning?" Kakeru frowned.

Haruto waved his hand in the air, "It's fine. It'll ring when it's done. Come on, let me show you the rest of the house."

The eldest led the younger two throughout the home, stories coming out from him one after another.

"And finally, we have the kitchen!" Haruto proclaimed as he entered the spacious area. He went to the stove, checking a medium sized pot which had steam coming out from the gaps of the lid. At that moment, the timer rang. Haruto grinned as he turned it off and grabbed his gloves, "Perfect timing!" He picked up the dish, taking it out of the kitchen, "Let's enjoy! Everything is set up!"

In the dining space, sure enough, were three plates set out neatly in front of three of the four seats. The three arranged themselves at each seat, and Haruto began to serve the dish. Rice with the fresh curry on the side.

Kakeru blinked as he took his first bite. "It's delicious."

Haruto beamed, "Isn't it?"

"I didn't think you could cook," Kaito commented, going for his next bite.

Haruto laughed, "Well, this is a special case. It's one of our Kaa-san's own recipes!"

Kakeru and Kaito froze.

"Okaa-san's…" Kaito muttered.

Haruto nodded, looking down at the dish, "Yes. Although… it never tastes as good as I remember hers being. I'm sorry that you two never got to try it."

Kakeru gulped, turning his stare to Haruto, "Tell us about her!"

Haruto blinked in surprise, but smiled softly. "Of course. You know, she went kind of crazy for our first Christmas together," he spoke, telling more tales as the trio ate together.

After they cleaned up their meals and filled up their stomachs, Haruto folded his hands. "We need to talk about what we do from here."

Kakeru nodded.

"Before I approached you two," Haruto said, "I found your families."

Kakeru straightened while Kaito stiffened.

"You spoke to my father?" Kakeru asked.

Haruto smiled and nodded, "I did. Tengenji-san is a kind and powerful person. You've been doing really well in Kabuki under him."

Kakeru said, "Yes. I would… I do like being a Tengenji."

Haruto nodded in approval, "We can talk with him about it, and figure out the details of what to do."

Kakeru agreed, "Yes. Thank you."

Haruto reached across the table and patted Kakeru on the head affectionately. He pulled back and looked to Kaito, his expression shifting into seriousness. "I spoke to your family as well."

Kakeru snapped his head to Kaito in confusion.

"Is that so?" Kaito muttered softly, stiffly holding his hands in his lap after seeing Haruto's face.

"Yes," Haruto said, his face contouring into a frown at his reaction.

"Oh…" Kaito twisted his hands. "So, you know," he stated.

"Yes," Haruto repeated firmly.

Kakeru glanced between the two similar looking siblings. He raised an eyebrow, "Am I missing something? Ya- Kaito, I thought you said you didn't have a family."

Kaito bit his lip and turned his head away from Kakeru's view.

"Then, he lied," Haruto declared, not breaking his gaze on Kaito. "There is a family in charge of Kaito."

Kakeru gasped, "Huh? What's going on?"

Kaito's shoulders shook as he leaned further in on himself, "I don't want to talk about it."

Haruto frowned, "We should. I don't want you to be in a bad situation." He sighed when Kaito didn't move. "Do you want to talk privately?"

Kaito grit his teeth.

Kakeru's eyes bounced between the two as he tried to make sense of the situation. "...Kaito?"

Kaito stood suddenly, "I said I don't want to talk about it!" He shoved the chair back and ran out of the room.

Haruto and Kakeru gasped.

"Kaito!" Haruto called out. He stopped short on his chase, not following the boy. He deflated into his seat.

Kakeru gasped at the situation at hand. "What- What is going on?"

Haruto sighed and rubbed his face. "He didn't tell you, I guess."

"He told us that he was an orphan, way before I knew I was," Kakeru said. "That's about it. He never went into any other details."

Haruto nodded, "I see. The thing is, that Kaito was given to a family. It was an older couple. However, the way they treated him… was basically such as a pet."

Kakeru's eyes widened.

Haruto continued, "He wasn't allowed to go anywhere without permission, including within the home he was in." He sighed, "The couple was kind, yet… wrong. It's not okay. I can't believe Kaito had to go through that by himself for so many years."

"That's disgusting," Kakeru spoke, his tone angry.

"I didn't… do anything because I wanted to speak with Kaito about it first," Haruto admit.

"Isn't there something you can do?" Kakeru cried out.

Haruto pressed his lips together, "I want to try to get Kaito under my custody. But again, I wanted to go over it with him first."

Kakeru sat back with a pensive look on his face, "You'll have to push him about it." At Haruto's confused glance he added, "Kaito's yelled at Hoshitani and us about budding into his family business countless times. Hoshitani only got through because he's so persistent."

Haruto's eyes widened, "I see." He stood up swiftly, "I'll go find him."

Kakeru nodded in response.

Haruto stepped out of the dining room and went to the front of the house. Kaito's shoes were still there. Good. Haruto climbed the stairs; he had a feeling he knew where the youngest twin was hiding.

Haruto opened the door, and sure enough, found Kaito crouched with his head in his lap beside the bed. Their parent's bed.

Kaito barely glanced up at the noise.

Haruto shuffled quietly as he took a seat beside Kaito and said nothing.

"...Tell me another story about them." It muffled in his sleeves.

Haruto hummed, a light smile playing on his lips as he thought of one. "Hear this. Kaa-san had a great sense in fashion. One morning I was helping dress you and Kakeru. Since you were twins, you often wore the same exact clothing and it was easy to tell you apart by your hair. So, this morning Kaa-san accidently left your shirt in the dryer and Kakeru was already dressed, so she left you in a different shirt with me while she fetched it. For some reason, when you saw Kakeru in his blue shirt versus your orange one, you freaked out and started crying. Kaa-san had to rush back to change your shirt to calm you down. It made her say that you got her sense of style."

Haruto laughed at the end of his story.

Kaito barely lifted his head, his eyes glanced at Haruto. "Another one," he requested.

Haruto nodded, "A little after your first birthday, Tou-san took all three of us to the park." He recounted the tale of their trip to the teen.

After he finished it, Haruto sighed, "I wish you could have met them."

"It's not fair," Kaito mumbled.

Haruto couldn't respond. He gulped thickly before saying, "I'm sorry you had to go through all of that."

Kaito bit his lip and slowly shifted to sit up straighter. "No. I'm sorry for getting mad so quickly."

"You have a right to," Haruto said. "After the way you had to grow up… and I did nothing."

Kaito turned his head to Haruto as the older male clenched his fists tightly. "It's not your fault," he said. Haruto stared at his hands, his face hard. Kaito carefully reached his hand out and placed it on top of the stiff pair.

Haruto snapped his gaze up.

Kaito swallowed, but nodded.

Haruto wrapped his arm around Kaito's shoulders and pulled him close. "Let's move forward."

"Yes."

"You can live here with me," Haruto said, "Kakeru can get a room too, if he wants it."

Kaito nodded against him.

"We'll figure it out," He said. Haruto held the teen tightly. They spent countless minutes against each other in their embrace.

Kaito broke the silence, "Where's Ten- Kakeru?"

Haruto smiled at the slip up but answered, "He should still be downstairs." He released Kaito and stood, the two of them making their way down and finding Kakeru in the living room watching television.

"Oh, took you two long enough," he said with a grin.

Haruto stepped around the couch, plopping down on the cushion right beside the red head. "What are you watching?" he asked as he waved Kaito over to his other side.

"Just the news," Kakeru answered easily, passing the remote over.

Haruto pressed some buttons on the controls guiding the screen, "I know a movie we'll enjoy."

" _Dusk_ …" Kaito read as Haruto selected it on the screen, "by Tsukigami Daichi."

Haruto grinned as he pressed play, "Yup. Tou-san directed this film." He put the remote down, then leaned over to grab Kaito, who decided to sit against the end of the sofa, by the arm and drag him closer. Haruto put his arm around him and used his other arm to wrap around Kakeru.

"Hey!" Kakeru and Kaito yelped together.

" _Shh_ ," Haruto hushed as he cuddled them close, "get comfy. We won't be going anywhere." His words rang true, past the idea of the movie.

 **~0~**

 **Thanks for making it to the end! I hope it didn't take too long ^^"**

 **Part 3 is the last part and much shorter than these firs two parts, it's mostly fluff and wrapping things up~**

 **Thanks for reading! Leave a review if you liked it! :)**


	3. Part 3

**PART 3! Finally here! Thank you to Natcchan again for helping me with some final touches! This chapter has spoilers for the Starmyu in Halloween OVA released in Oct 2018. If you haven't seen it, you can read the translations on ryota-kunstranslations dot tumblr dot c-o-m and find it there! I mean I guess you could read this without it too, but it might be a bit confusing. Not too bad I suppose.**

 **Anyways, enjoy!**

 **~0~**

"Morning," Kakeru greeted the trio as he entered the common room for breakfast.

"Good morning, Tengenji!" Hoshitani returned cheerfully.

Kakeru glanced over them. "Where's Kaito?" he asked as he washed his hands.

"Right here," Kaito's voice appeared from the doorway before anyone could respond. He stepped up beside Kakeru, grabbing the tray of food that held his name on it. "Oh, Kakeru," he stopped, reaching into pocket. He pulled out a ring of keys which jingled as he did. "You left these out yesterday at Nii-san's house. I forgot to hand them back to you."

Kakeru's eyes widened as he took them, "Oh, thank you. That's a big save."

Kaito simply nodded, taking his tray to the table. He faltered in step when he noticed three pairs of eyes on him. "What?"

Kuga pressed his lips together. "This is new."

"Huh?" Kaito blinked.

"You guys are going by first name now," Nayuki commented with surprise mixed in his voice.

Hoshitani's eyes widened, "Wow!" he paused, a gasp escaping him, "We should do that too!"

"Huh?" Nayuki snapped his gaze to Hoshitani in shock.

Hoshitani grinned, "Let's call each other by our first names, too! Don't you agree, _Toru_?"

Nayuki jumped, startled, "H-Hoshitani-kun…"

"No! Just call me Yuta!" Hoshitani puffed his chest.

Kuga nodded, "Okay. It's fine with me, Yuta."

Hoshitani brightened.

Kaito sighed, his shock wearing off as he joined them at the table, "Honestly. You guys get too excited sometimes."

Kakeru huffed as he crossed his arm, "It should be fine. We call Tavian by her name, anyways."

Four pairs of eyes turned to the tall red head in shock and confusion.

Kuga was the one to comment finally, "...She doesn't count."

"What?" Kakeru snapped back, "Of course she does!"

Hoshitani grinned, "Then, wouldn't that mean she has a last name?"

"Would it be Tengenji?" Nayuki smiled, playing along.

Kakeru nodded seriously, "Of course it is."

Kaito snickered into his hand suddenly. "I can imagine that you made her a birth certificate."

Kakeru turned a suspicious shade of red as he spit out, "I-I did no such thing!"

"Aha!" Hoshitani pointed at him, "You totally did! Your face is all red!"

"No it's not!"

"It is too!"

"Shut up, you boor!"

 **~0~**

" _Nii-san! Say Nii-san, Kaito!" Haruto's younger face clearly spoke._

" _You know they can't talk yet," a beautiful woman said, smiling down above them. A man sat behind the woman on a sofa, playing with a little red head baby in his hands._

 _Haruto grinned, "I'm trying to teach them to say it early! Come on, Kaito! Kakeru is being stubborn and won't say it either!" He poked baby Kaito on the cheek, "Don't be shy, okay? I'm your Nii-san!"_

Kaito shot up in bed. He panted for air after the dream. No, not dream. Memory.

The same one he had many times before, was clear now.

He huffed a laugh. "Nii-san…" he muttered. He had to remember to ask about this memory of his.

Kaito rested his hands on his lap, curling them over the blanket that pooled up there. He sighed, kicking his legs over the side of the bed to climb out, pulling his pillow along with him. He quietly slipped out of the room, not to disturb the lightly snoring Kuga, and padded outside without putting his shoes on. He went past a few doors, before stopping at the face of one.

Deciding against knocking on the door and disturbing everyone in the hall, Kaito opened the door and entered the single person room.

Kakeru was laying off center- near the wall- with Tavian curled up beside the pillow.

Kaito stepped forward, putting his pillow down beside Kakeru's, being mindful of Tavian, and layed down on the mattress beside Kakeru. He stared up at the ceiling, the view different than the one from his own bed, since it didn't have a bunk above it, then sighed.

Kakeru shifted and suddenly his arm was draped over Kaito's body.

Kaito deadpanned and shoved it off himself, letting it flop back awkwardly against Kakeru.

Kakeru sputtered at the sudden action and Kaito held his breath. Kakeru took a deep breath in. "Huh?" he mumbled, blinking his eyes that were thick with sleep, "Kaito?"

Kaito slowly turned his head to look at him, "Yeah…"

Kakeru rubbed his face, "What? Why are you… in my bed?"

Kaito played with his hands, stalling for a moment. "Ah… I… had a dream."

"What?" Kakeru blinked again, this time in confusion, "You woke me up for a dream?"

Kaito stopped. He realized that Kakeru was right. It was a small thing that wasn't worth anyone's sleep. He rolled over, "Sorry… I'll leave."

A hand grabbed his arm as he was rolling off the mattress. "Lay down and tell me what it was about," Kakeru spoke clearly.

Kaito's eyes widened a fraction in the darkness. He slowly sank back into the bed.

"So?" Kakeru pressed, "What did you dream about?"

"It was more like a memory," Kaito clarified softly, turning his head up again and trailing off.

Kakeru rolled over onto his back, lifting his arm to rest over his head. He blinked his eyes, then stared at Kaito tiredly, "Well, tell me what it was about."

Kaito glanced at him from the corner of his eye. He frowned and said, "Your breath stinks."

A moment passed over them.

Kakeru reared backwards on the mattress, then shouted angrily, "What? You boor, how would you expect me to have good breath in the middle of the night?"

Kaito burst into laughter; Kakeru soon followed.

Kakeru sighed, regaining his breath, "Now, what was it that made you wake me up?"

"I didn't mean to," Kaito said softly. "It's just this… memory… I've had it a few times. And just now, it was really clear."

"What was it about?" Kakeru asked.

"I see Nii-san talking to me," Kaito described. "He's telling me to say _Nii-san_ and that you're being too stubborn to," he added with a grin to Kakeru.

Kakeru huffed.

"And then I see… Okaa-san, who replies to Nii-san," Kaito continues. "And behind her is Otou-san who is playing with you."

They were both quiet.

"You'll… have to ask Nii-san about it," Kakeru spoke softly.

Kaito simply nodded. He carefully looked at Kakeru, "Do you ever get dreams like that?"

Kakeru blinked at the sudden question, then closed his eyes, humming, "No. I don't recall any. Most of my childhood memories are with my father."

"Oh," Kaito said, a silence blanketing them.

The blanket suddenly flopped over his face, blacking out Kaito's sight.

"So if you're done, shut up and let me sleep," Kakeru spoke into his darkness.

Kaito pulled the blanket off his eyes, then rolled to his eyes, bringing the cloth over with him. "Fine," he muttered.

Kakeru shifted himself, and soon the two of them settled into a silence.

"Goodnight," Kakeru whispered suddenly.

Kaito buried his face into the blanket at his chin, "Yeah, good night."

 **~0~**

Kaito slowly blinked his eyes open. He was awake and it was still dark.

He rolled over so that he was facing against the wall and could read the clock. Another 3 am. He sighed and pulled out of his bed, dragging his pillow along. Quietly, he exited the room and head down to another down the hall, where he entered silently.

Tavian lay near Kakeru's feet, so Kaito put his pillow down beside Kakeru's and layed down on his side, facing the window. His eyes fluttered shut.

Suddenly, he felt a weight come over his shoulder and something touch his face. Kaito blinked his eyes, pulling his head back, but only falling into easier reach. The hand patted his cheek.

"Hey," Kaito grunted.

The hand grabbed his nose.

Kaito pressed his face into his pillow. "Stop it," he mumbled.

The hand let up, but then he felt a yank in his hair.

Kaito smacked the hand away, "Cut it out."

"Huh?" Kakeru's voice came from behind. "Who?"

Kaito rolled his eyes, not bothering to turn, detecting the smile on Kakeru's face. "You already know who."

Kakeru let out the laugh he was holding, "I need to know who keeps invading my bed at night."

"Whatever," Kaito muttered, pulling Kakeru's blanket over himself.

"Hey," Kakeru yelped, tugging the blanket back, "you're taking too much."

"I barely have any here," Kaito stated, pulling on the corner near him.

Kakeru growled, taking his end close, "Bring your own blanket."

"Why don't you have an extra?" Kaito retorted, still in the tug of war.

"I do," Kakeru grunted, trying to roll the blanket over with him, "they're in the closet."

"Then," Kaito grasped at the blanket, tugging it over his shoulder, "get them out."

Before Kakeru could retort again, a meow interrupted them. Tavian leaped up from her spot and jumped in between the two. She curled up over the blanket, quelling the tug of war. The decision gave Kaito enough to cover himself, but barely enough for Kakeru's shoulder coverage.

"Tavian," Kakeru moaned.

Tavian meowed again, lifting her tail and resting it against Kakeru.

Kakeru sniffed, "You do care."

Kaito rolled his eyes, but sent a smirk to Kakeru, "Guess that settles it."

Kakeru huffed, "You're lucky that it was my precious Tavian, or else I wouldn't have lost."

"Sure," Kaito retorted.

"Is that a challenge?" Kakeru cried back.

" _Shh_ ," Kaito rolled away, closing his eyes. "I'm trying to sleep."

"Why you-" Kakeru puffed. He shifted in the bed, but was quiet.

Kaito smiled softly, "Goodnight."

"Night, you boor."

Kaito snickered, "Yeah, yeah."

 **~0~**

Another early morning for Kaito. He sighed as he slipped into the end of the hallway. He quietly pushed the door open, swiftly entering.

He flinched when he kicked a shoe near the door that hit the wall with a loud thud. Kaito looked inside the room to make sure he didn't disturb the resident and stopped at the sight the greeted him.

Tavian was laying in the center of Kakeru's still neatly made bed. And Kakeru… he was laying by himself on the ground.

Kakeru looked up at the noise that the shoe had made and froze at the sight of Kaito. His mouth opened, flapping in order to say something.

Kaito deadpanned. "It's okay," he said into the silence, "you don't have to explain yourself."

Kakeru's jaw dropped as Kaito slowly backed up with the intention to leave the room.

Tavian suddenly sat up and stretched out her body. She jumped off the bed and padded over to Kaito. Kaito lifted her up against him, cuddling her with his pillow. She purred.

Kaito laughed as he looked at Kakeru. "I guess she was waiting for me."

Kakeru looked on with tears in his eyes, "Tavian…"

Kaito went to the bed and put her down, "What did you do to her? Give her the wrong food?"

"I would never!" Kakeru retorted sharply.

Kaito shrugged, sitting down on the bed with Tavian on his lap.

Kakeru sighed and flopped backwards onto the floor, staring at the ceiling. "Go ahead and lay down," he said.

Kaito raised an eyebrow, "And you?"

Kakeru's eyes fluttered shut, "I'm halfway asleep."

"So dramatic," Kaito rolled his eyes. He reached for the pillow on the bed and threw it on Kakeru's face, who gagged at the sudden force. Kaito snickered but continued to put his own pillow down. He laid down, putting Tavian down beside him. "Thanks for the bed," he smiled as Tavian purred under his hand.

Kakeru groaned. "Whatever, you boor. Goodnight."

Kaito sighed, rolling over to face the window. His eyes blinked shut, but they opened again. Sleep wasn't coming. He let his gaze stare out into the room.

It was weird. Not too long ago, he was alone. Now, he had a twin and an older brother. A twin that was someone who he was already close to, and a brother who… he was a fan of.

Kaito's eyes widened.

Tsukigami Haruto was his brother.

The person he looked up to was the closest relative one could have.

Kaito covered his face as emotions filled him. Joy, shock, embarrassment. It was too much. His most admired person was now so close to him.

"Hey," Kakeru's voice suddenly snapped him out of his thoughts, "what's wrong with you now? Stop making that dumb face and go to sleep already."

Kaito pursed his lips. He released a breath, "I'm… I can't sleep."

Kakeru groaned, "Really?" He turned, his eyes meeting Kaito's in the darkness. "What are you thinking about?"

"It's noth-"

"Don't _nothing_ me, you boor." Kakeru interrupted. "I can see something's up clearly."

Kaito sighed. He took a moment to mull over his words. "Remember during our training for the roles of _Shadow and Lights_?"

"It wasn't that long ago," Kakeru deadpanned.

Kaito hummed his agreement. "And Yuta and I switched roles?"

"Yeah," Kakeru scoffed, "because you were too hung up over-" He stopped abruptly.

"Yeah," Kaito said, knowing that he had figured out what he meant, "and now… Tsukigami Haruto is… our… our Nii… san."

Kakeru was quiet for a moment. "It's the same for me, you know." Kaito looked up at him as he continued, "That it's Tsukigami Haruto we're related to, of all people. I think anyone would have the same reaction."

Kaito swallowed hard. "Yeah…"

Kakeru eyed Kaito's silent form. "Don't fret about it." He released a breath, "It feels weird but… Nii-san, he… really does care for us. And you know him, if you tell him that you admire him, I'm sure he'll go over the moon in joy."

A silence spread over them for a moment, before Kaito started snickering quietly.

Kakeru blinked, "What are you laughing at?"

" _Moon_ ," Kaito choked out.

Kakeru rolled his eyes, "Oh, shut up. That's not even funny." Despite his words, he couldn't help but share the laugh.

Kaito closed his eyes. With everything that happened, he had not thought of how lucky he was. He sighed contently, pulling the blanket up his shoulder. He uttered with a smile, "Goodnight Kakeru."

 **~0~**

A tall young man stood by the gates of the dorm building as two figures approached. Haruto turned, grinning widely, "Kakeru, Kaito!"

Kaito took one look at him and deadpanned, "Nii-san, you're too open out here. Are you trying to get surrounded by fans?"

Haruto froze and started laughing at his words, "I suppose you're right."

Kakeru reached into his pocket and pulled out a glasses frame, "Here, take my disguise."

Kaito turned his dead stare to Kakeru, "You still have those on you?"

"Huh?" Kakeru retorted, "They work great!"

Haruto flipped the arms of the glasses open and slipped it on. "They fit perfectly. Thanks, you two, you're so reliable," he let out a charming smile.

Kaito and Kakeru shared skeptical looks.

Haruto waved his hands in front of them, "Now then, are you two ready to go? We're going to have a great time!"

"Yeah, yeah," Kakeru said. "Where are we going?" he asked as the two began following Haruto.

Haruto smiled, "I was thinking to go to the beach. We can have fun there then hang around the town, and be back by evening."

"Sounds fine." Kaito replied.

"Just fine, huh?" Haruto retorted with a glance back.

Kaito blushed, causing Kakeru to laugh, "You're so transparent!"

"Shut up!" Kaito cried in embarrassment.

Haruto laughed as their short walk ended. "Here's my car, get in."

The bright blue Nissan Skyline GTR R35 shined at the boys.

"This…" Kaito gaped, "is your car?"

Kakeru whistled, "I call shotgun."

Kaito jolted, "What? No way!"

Haruto smirked, unlocking the door as Kakeru was already going around to the front, "Sorry Kaito, it was shotgun."

Kaito choked as Kakeru laughed loudly while sliding into the front seat. He grumbled, but entered in the back. Putting his seatbelt on, Kaito crossed his arms and grumbled, "I get it on the way back."

"Sounds good to me," Haruto grinned as he backed out of his parking space to begin their outing.

They spent half an hour driving before they reached the beach. There, they enjoyed a stroll down the boardwalk, looking at the side stalls and various acts. They ate lunch late, at an open seafood restaurant.

A while after lunch, as the heat of the day was getting to them again, Haruto got popsicles for them to enjoy. The three settled under a picnic table and watched the water.

Haruto finished up first, having chosen a smaller popsicle, and licked his lips. "That was a nice treat." He stood to throw the trash, then sat back down. "I have to tell you two something," he said, looking over their relaxed forms.

"What's up?" Kakeru asked cautiously, his eyes narrowing slightly as he licked his dripping cherry popsicle.

"It's about work," Haruto answered carefully spelling out each word. He interlocked his fingers then released them, tapping the pads of each finger against the opposite hand. The two boys watched as the eldest hesitated before speaking. "They're calling me back to America."

"Oh." Kaito's widened gaze reflected Kakeru's.

Haruto glanced away from the double downcast expressions. "Yeah…" he gulped, "I hadn't planned for it to happen so soon…"

Kakeru let his popsicle down, the juice starting to drip onto the table. "How soon?"

"Well," Haruto bit his lip, "I thought I had two weeks left, but they want me back in a week."

"A week?" Kaito coughed, hiding the gasp that escaped him.

Haruto let out a hum of confirmation. "It's sudden, I know. But I have about a half year of work left before I can come back fully…"

The twins fell silent.

Haruto peeked at them from the corner of his eye, before lifting his head to the crestfallen teens. "Kakeru? Kaito?"

Kakeru jolted, looking up from his melting popsicle. "Ah! Yeah, well, it's for work. You made this commitment before you even knew about us, so it's not like we can say anything that can change that." He laughed in a forced way.

"No," Haruto cut off with a shocked gasp, "I, it's not-"

"It's fine," Kaito cut him off without looking up. "You were here on a break, anyways. The timing is just wrong for us."

"What? No, of course that's not it!" Haruto cried out firmly.

Kakeru shook his head, stopping Haruto, "It's for work, isn't it? Go finish it without slacking off." He sighed, "Even if… I am a little upset about the news, it doesn't change the fact that you gave your word. Besides," he stared into Haruto's eyes with determination, "we'll be there one day, too, you know."

"It wouldn't do us well if we held you back," Kaito added, his own eyes shining as he met Haruto's gaze.

Haruto let out a shaky breath and smiled wide, "You two… thank you. You really are amazing." He shook his head at himself, "I expect to see you two up here soon."

"You can count on it," Kaito declared with a confident smirk that reflected the one on Kakeru's face.

The rest of their time at the boardwalk flew by and before long it was getting dark.

Haruto looked up at the dimming sky. "Time to get back, you two."

"Oh," Kakeru nodded, "okay."

The trio made it back to where Haruto had his car parked and shifted inside, Kaito taking the front seat as promised on the ride over.

They were quiet as they drove, the sky darkening as the car rhythmically rode on. Haruto glanced at Kaito for a moment, noticing how the teen's eyes were drooping. Kakeru's own clouded gaze was staring out the window, lights flashing over his face.

Haruto hummed lightly, "This reminds me of a time when you two were small."

Kaito glanced at him while Kakeru leaned his head around the seat briefly, "Yeah?"

Haruto nodded, "One night, I was helping Kaa-san put you two to bed. Kakeru was already laying in his crib, so she was putting Kaito down in his crib, but he wouldn't stop crying. No matter what, Kaa-san couldn't figure out why you were crying. You weren't hungry or dirty, but you were tired. Still, you didn't sleep." He paused, glancing at the two. "Do you know what finally got him to sleep?" They both shook their heads in response. Haruto laughed. "This was the first night that you two were in separate cribs. Kaito kept crying unless he was next to Kakeru. And after that, he didn't make a sound."

Kakeru laughed out loud while Kaito turned away in a sense of embarrassment.

"He still does it!" Kakeru proclaimed.

Haruto blinked. "What?"

Kakeru nodded with a smirk. "He's been sneaking into my room at night to sleep with me."

Haruto turned his wide gaze to Kaito, "Is this true?"

Kaito turned red and ducked away.

"It is," Kakeru piped up with a grin.

Haruto laughed, "That makes me happy to hear!"

Kaito grunted.

Kakeru grinned mischievously at Kaito's discomfort.

They eased into a nice silence once again.

"Oh," Kaito said, glancing at Haruto. "I've had a dream… or memory that I wanted to ask you about."

"A dream?" Haruto commented, "What happens?"

Kaito quietly explained the memory to him.

Haruto chuckled. "That's a memory alright."

"It is?" Kakeru piped up.

Haruto nodded, "It sure it. It was when you two were just at the age of talking. I guess I was excited for you two to talk." He laughed, "But when you two learned, Kakeru wouldn't stop. Kaito was the quieter one, for sure."

Haruto continued to tell the small tales that he could recall, softly trailing off as both teens began to doze off against the lull of the ride.

The eldest smiled as he drove on. He whispered into the silence, "I'm glad we're together again."

 **~0~**

 **(Starmyu in Halloween OVA)**

"Geez… Why am I, a traditional Japanese artist, doing something so foreign as making a jack-o-lantern?" Kakeru complained as he lifted his carved pumpkin to inspect it.

Kaito glanced over at Kakeru, "This isn't the first time you went along with Hoshitani's impulses, is it?"

Kakeru scowled, "Still!" He looked at Kaito's pumpkin, "Huh?" He burst out into laughter, "The heck's that? What part of that is a face?"

Kaito gawked in confusion, "Huh? It has eyes, doesn't it? A nose and a mouth, too. I'm making Nii-san."

"Nii-san?" Kakeru rejoiced his laughter. Tears gathered in his eyes, "You have no right to judge Kuga's drawings now!"

Tatsumi smiled from across them, "Yamamoto's not so good at handcrafts, is he? Remember how we tried to draw each other's faces during middle-"

Kaito cut him off, "Let's not talk about that." He looked over at Kakeru, who was oddly quiet after his mutterings of "that face, that face-."

Kakeru had his phone out and took a picture of his pumpkin.

"Hey!" Kaito cried, "What are you doing?"

Kakeru snickered, "I'm sending a picture of your wonderful portrait to Nii-san."

"No! It's not done!" Kaito cried out quickly, reaching for Kakeru's phone.

Kakeru pulled back, "No way! It's already sending!"

"Stop!" Kaito yelped, tackling Kakeru over the bench in an attempt to snatch the device back.

Tatsumi and Sawatari watched as the two wrestled.

Tatsumi hummed, "Do you hear them talking about a _Nii-san_ , as well, Eigo?"

Sawatari nodded, "I do."

"Something has changed about their dynamic, hasn't it?" Tatsumi observed.

"It seems so," Sawatari agreed.

Kakeru was laughing like crazy as Kaito still struggled to get a hold of his phone. It suddenly chimed, pausing them midst wrestling.

Kakeru turned to look at the screen. "He replied," he stated.

Kaito pulled away from Kakeru and frowned, "Already? Isn't it almost three a.m. there? Isn't he supposed to be asleep now?"

Kakeru shrugged, pulling open the message. "He said, and I quote, it's amazing. I love it and it looks just like me. _Insert a bunch of heart emojis_. Keep it safe because I want to save it forever. End quote."

Both boys deadpanned.

"...He does know that this is a perishable, right?" Kaito asked expressionlessly.

Kakeru shrugged but snickered, "At least someone likes your pumpkin."

Kaito shot him a dirty look.

Kakeru's phone chimed again and he checked it.

"Now what?" Kaito asked.

"He wants to see mine," Kakeru replied and added, "the better one."

Kaito deadpanned as Kakeru continued to take a picture of his own progress.

Sawatari spoke up, "Everyone has something they're bad at. At the very least, I can say that your pumpkin is better than Tatsumi's cooking, Yamamoto-kun."

"Hey," Kaito scowled.

Tatsumi smiled in between all of them, "Well, let's finish these up."

 **~0~**

 **(Starmyu in Halloween cont)**

Futaba fainted, falling backwards after witnessing Inumine eating the expensive truffles that were bought under his name.

Hoshitani gasped, "Futaba-san?"

"Please hang in there!" Nayuki cried.

Kaito turned around for help, "Saotome-san!"

"Futaba-san is-!" Hoshitani started, but they stopped as Saotome fell backwards as well.

Kuga caught him, lowering to the ground as Kakeru grabbed the box that he dropped.

"Wh-What's wrong?" Nayuki stuttered.

Saotome lifted a finger to the box, his eyes dead, "Th-That's…" the boys followed and stared at the atrocious figure. "A sculpture that Haruto made during our middle school days… It's my face... I thought that he destroyed it long ago but... Why is my trauma in a place like this...? Even if it was made by my beloved Haruto, I can't bear to look at it. There's a limit to how bad he can be with his hands…"

Kakeru and Tatsumi digested the story, before looking at Kaito and laughing.

"Looks like you and Nii-san share something else in common," Kakeru laughed out loud.

Kaito ducked his head, a wide blush spreading across his face.

Saotome's eyes suddenly snapped open and he looked up at Kakeru, " _Nii-san_?"

Kakeru and Kaito stopped.

Saotome stared at the box with the horrific statue, then at Kakeru, and then at Kaito. " _Nii-san_?" he repeated again, sitting up from Kuga's hold, "What are you talking about?"

The whole room silenced, zeroing in on the three.

Tatsumi stood up, "I would like to know what is going on, as well."

Sawatari nodded, "Earlier, you two were acting… strangely."

Kakeru sighed, ducking his head, "I guess it's out, huh, Kaito?"

Kaito shook his head, "We weren't really hiding it."

"Huh?" Futaba suddenly sat up, "What?"

"The truth is," Kaito spoke, "that Kakeru and I are twins and Tsukigami Haruto is our older brother."

The room was silent for a moment, until both Saotome and Futaba started shouted.

"What? How?"

"My beloved Haruto has siblings? Since when?"

Kakeru and Kaito backed up from the older two.

"We only recently found out…" Kakeru choked out.

As Kaito and Kakeru explained the story to the older duo, Tatsumi looked at Hoshitani. "You three don't look surprised."

Hoshitani laughed, "Ah, yeah. They told us earlier. But we were just as surprised!"

Nayuki smiled, "Yeah, but they've always got along in their own sense."

Kuga nodded quietly.

"Well I'll be," Toraishi commented, after hearing their story.

Ugawa scoffed, "What are the chances of that?"

"Ugawa-kun…" Nayuki said nervously.

"This… is amazing," Saotome choked. He suddenly stared at Futaba, "Uozumi…"

Futaba raised an eyebrow, then his eyes widened, "H-He-?"

The two rushed out of the room without another word.

The remaining boys awkwardly stared, then turned to the newly revealed twins.

Kakeru stood up, standing in front of Kaito and putting his hands on his hips, "What? Anybody got a problem with this?"

Kitahara scoffed, "As if. If you think we didn't see something between you two before, you're guilty."

Nanjo smiled, "This was a funny revelation."

Kaito frowned at his expression.

"I don't care," Ageha said.

"Ageha," Hachiya gasped. He looked at the two, flailing his arms, "Sorry! It's great that-" Who knows how he suddenly tripped; they left him to pick himself up.

"A-Anyways," Hoshitani interrupted, "let's get started on our Halloween party now!"

"Yeah!"

 **~0~**

 **(Starmyu in Halloween cont)**

A chime broke through the silence of the van. The male looked at the screen of his phone. "Oh, they're calling," he said to himself. He grinned before answering, "Hello?"

" _Don't_ hello _us, Uozumi!_ " Futaba cried from the opposite side.

" _Hello?_ " Another voice spoke.

Uozumi blinked, "Haru?"

" _Yes,_ " Saotome said in a smooth but clearly panicked tone, " _we're doing a joint call_."

Haruto laughed, " _Did you two enjoy our package?_ "

Futaba yelped, " _You jerks! I can't believe you did that!? How am I supposed to pay that off?"_

Uozumi rolled his eyes as Futaba complained. He zoned out as Haruto asked Saotome about his gift, who replied in panic.

" _Enough about that,_ " Futaba cut off suddenly, gaining Uozumi's attention, " _why did neither of you inform us about little Kakeru-kun and Kaito-kun?_ "

Uozumi froze.

Haruto laughed nervously after a moments pause, " _Ah, so you know._ "

" _Haruto!_ " Saotome cried, " _Why didn't you tell us?_ "

" _Sorry,_ " Haruto said, not sounding it at all, " _I must have forgotten._ "

Uozumi rolled his own eyes at his tone.

" _Haruto! Our precious kouhai are your brothers!_ " Futaba restated.

" _So they told you?_ " Haruto clarified.

" _They explained what you didn't,_ " Futaba retorted sharply.

Haruto laughed, " _Ah, Kakeru and Kaito are so reliable. I knew I could count on them._ "

Uozumi deadpanned, "For real?" Did he leave the two boys to answer for themselves on purpose?

" _Yes,_ " Haruto replied immediately.

Typical.

" _Haruto!_ " Saotome and Futaba whined.

Haruto sighed, " _I don't know what you two want me to say._ " There was a pause. " _Uozumi gave me the idea to find them. After my parents' anniversary… I found them again. It's okay, isn't it?_ "

" _Haruto, we aren't upset,_ " Futaba explained. " _This is great news. We just would've liked to have been clued in, too._ "

" _I know, I'm sorry_ ," Haruto said sincerely. " _I wasn't ready to face it myself and I couldn't bring it up to you two. Forgive me, friends_."

Futaba sighed, " _Of course._ "

" _Yeah, Haruto_ ," Saotome said with a wobbly voice.

Uozumi scoffed and rolled his eyes, "Okay, you two."

" _We should all hang out when I get back again! Us and my brothers! I'm sure it'll be fun_!" Haruto declared.

"Yeah, sure…" Uozumi replied sarcastically. "Anyways, I'm just going to go-"

" _Wait, Uozumi!_ " Futaba cried suddenly, " _The boys are starting their Halloween party, you should come on by!_ " he sang the latter terms.

Uozumi scowled to himself. "No-"

" _Oh!_ " Haruto gasped, " _That's right! Uozumi, didn't you say you were right outside the dorms?_ "

Uozumi choked at the sudden leak of information, "Haru-"

" _What?_ " Futaba and Saotome cried. There was shuffling at their end.

" _There's his atrocious SUV!_ " Saotome called out.

Uozumi growled, "It's not atrocious, it's convenient!"

" _Uozumi, you rat_ ," Futaba said, " _get in here!_ "

" _Or we'll deploy the boys on you_ ," Saotome added smugly.

" _Sounds fun!_ " Haruto laughed. " _Have fun for me! Oh and if you can, take a picture of Kakeru and Kaito with their pumpkins for me!_ "

" _Of course we will_ ," Saotome proclaimed.

Futaba added, " _We'll talk to you guys about the gifts later. And, Uozumi you better be coming in!_ "

Uozumi scoffed, "Yeah right."

He hung up as he heard their voices rise. He stared at the screen in the darkness of his car. Uozumi patted his lap, then leaned his head back against the seat.

Finally, he unclipped his seatbelt and opened the door. Maybe he would go see Haruto's brothers for the first time.

 **~0~**

Kakeru was checking his phone idly when his door opened suddenly. He recognized Kaito's blue hair immediately and sat up to greet him.

However, Kaito loitered at the doorway, saying a few words to someone presumably in the hallway, before entering fully. "Hey," Kaito greeted, closing the door behind himself.

Kakeru raised an eyebrow, "Who was that?"

"Tatsumi and Sawatari," Kaito answered, taking out his own phone as he plopped himself on the ground beside the bed, "they asked if I wanted to go with them to this cafe we go to once in a while. They're going tomorrow."

"Oh…" Kakeru stared.

"Ah," Kaito blinked up at him suddenly, "want to come with? Their strawberry milk is pretty on point."

Kakeru paused. He turned his head to the side sharply, "No thanks. You go have fun with your friends."

Kaito scowled at the brash tone. " _My_ friends?" he choked, "They-"

He was interrupted by a ringing. Kakeru looked at his device and the caller. He stood up swiftly, ignoring Kaito's shock stricken expression, "Excuse me."

Kaito didn't get the chance to respond before Kakeru shut the door between them.

Tavian mewled up to Kaito. He glanced at her, petting her back. "What's up with him…" he muttered, his brows dipped in confusion as he stared after the flat faced door.

 **~0~**

Kaito couldn't figure it out. Ever since that incident in his room, Kakeru seemed to have a cold attitude towards him. It was even after then that Kakeru still was distant and less approachable than before. It felt like Kaito lost any relationship progress they had.

Kaito sighed, letting his phone wobbled between his fingers. He just replied to a text from Haruto about his general well being. He didn't tell him about Kakeru, though. It wouldn't make sense to bring in someone who wasn't present into their problem. And Kaito was sure that it was just him that Kakeru was being sour towards, so it must have something to do with their family or himself specifically.

A call got his attention. "Kaito, what's wrong?"

Kaito glanced up at Hoshitani, then hummed, "Ah, Yuta." After the initial awkwardness, the team had settled into a comfort with addressing each other by first name. "It's just... Kakeru." He sighed.

"What happened with him?" Hoshitani asked, taking a seat beside him on the bench.

Kaito shrugged, "I don't know. He just started acting strangely with me. I thought we were getting along, but… maybe not."

Hoshitani shook his head, "Don't say that! You two are closer than ever! Our whole team is!"

Kaito looked at Hoshitani through the side of his eye, "Then why is he acting like this?"

Hoshitani deflated, "Well… when did it start?"

"The other day," Kaito replied, "Tatsumi and Sawatari invited me to this cafe we go to occasionally and when I asked him if he wanted to join, he got mad." He sighed, "I don't know why."

Hoshitani hummed in thought. "You, Toru, Tatsumi, and Sawatari went to the same junior high, didn't you?" He continued after Kaito nodded, "Then, maybe he's jealous."

"Jealous?" Kaito repeated incredulously. "This is Tengenji Kakeru we're talking about, you know that right?"

Hoshitani waved his hands, "Yeah I do! Just hear me out. Those three could say that they know you pretty well because they've been around you since way back then. Maybe Kakeru wishes he knew you like that. I think siblings should be close, twins even more so. Don't you think?"

Kaito mulled over his words. "I suppose you have a point."

"Give him a little time," Hoshitani advised, "and if he doesn't come around I'll go talk to him!"

Kaito rolled his eyes, "Right."

Hoshitani patted Kaito on the shoulder, "Cheer up. You'll get through it and come back stronger!"

Kaito let out a small smile, "Yeah. Thanks, Yuta."

 **~0~**

A voice stopped him in his tracks. "Tengenji-san? What are you doing here?"

Kakeru lifted his head in confusion, realizing that he was face to face with two identical looking girls with pink hair. "Nayuki sisters?" he blinked. "Why are you here?"

Tsumugi gazed at him blankly, "We are in front of our school."

Kakeru stopped. He turned to look out at the middle school campus that he was in front of then gasped. "What the-"

Yuki scoffed, "You seriously didn't notice? Geez, where's your head?"

"We can listen," Tsumugi commented.

Yuki linked her arm with her sister, "We're the best listeners!"

Kakeru stepped backwards at their sudden onslaught, "I-It's fine… I can-"

"No can do!" Yuki piped up.

"Let's go," Tsumugi said, leading them forward.

Kakeru sighed, following after the twins. They led him to a small patch of grass nearby the campus.

"So," Yuki began, "wanna tell us what's up?"

"Not really," Kakeru retorted.

Tsumugi whipped out her cell phone, "Talk or we'll call our Onii-chan."

Kakeru shrugged, "He doesn't know anything."

"We'll call Hoshitani-san!" Yuki tried.

Again, Kakeru shrugged.

"Kuga-san!"

"Yamamoto-san!"

Kakeru stiffened after the twins called out both names.

"Hm?" Yuki noticed his stiffness and glanced at her twin, "Which one was it, Tsumugi?"

"Yamamoto-san," Tsumugi answered.

Yuki grinned as Kakeru scowled, "Gotcha."

"You two have seriously bad personalities," Kakeru said as he deflated.

Yuki giggled. "So? What has it between you two?"

"Yamamoto-san and Tengenji-san usually get along," Tsumugi stated.

"In some weird sense," Yuki commented.

Kakeru sighed, folding his hands on his lap. "I guess Toru hasn't told you? Nah, he wouldn't have."

The twins blinked owlishly.

"First name?" Yuki gasped.

"This is new," Tsumugi nodded.

Kakeru's cheeks tinged pink. "Ah… it was kind of Kaito's and my fault…" He sighed, "Listen, long story short, Kaito and I are twins and Tsukigami Haruto is our brother."

Both girls gasped.

"That sounds like good news," Tsumugi stated.

"It is…" Kakeru agreed. He deflated again, "But… we…" his words barely escaped his lips, "barely know each other."

"Listen Tengenji-san," Yuki spoke, waving a finger at him, "we might not understand the situation, but Tsumugi and I are also twins. No matter what you're feeling, you're both feeling it! You need to talk to each other. Spend time together, enjoy being with each other. That's how you get close."

Tsumugi stepped up beside Yuki and took her hand, Yuki smiling in return.

"Stop sulking," Tsumugi said to Kakeru.

Kakeru's eyes went wide. He swallowed hard, then nodded up at the girls. He stood up, "I have to get going."

Yuki and Tsumugi smiled.

"Yeah," Yuki nodded, "You can do it, Tengenji-san!"

Kakeru ran off. He found his path back to the dorms and nearly ran into Kuga in the hallway as he ran up the stairs. "Where's Kaito?" he asked quickly.

The purple haired teen raised his eyebrows yet answered, "In our room."

"Thanks," Kakeru quipped as he rushed away. He made it to the door and slammed it open, "Kaito!"

Kaito jolted up, looking back from his desk. He frowned, "Kakeru? What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry," Kakeru said quickly, stepping towards the other teen inside the room, "for how I've been acting to you lately."

Kaito raised an eyebrow at his suddenness.

"We're twins and it just felt like, we don't know anything about each other," Kakeru confessed. "I'm sorry I got mad at you for hanging out with Sawatari and Tatsumi. It felt like they knew more about you than I did and… it upset me that I don't have the same knowledge as they do." He looked up at Kaito sadly, "Forgive me."

Kaito's eyes widened. He stared at Kakeru. A laugh escaped him suddenly. It continued, bubbling out in a stream of laughter.

"H-Hey…" Kakeru jolted with surprise. "What are you laughing about?"

Kaito bent over in his laughter, carefully trying to hold himself up, "Y-You…" he stood, wiping his eyes, "you're always so dramatic, Kakeru."

"Huh?"

"I can't believe you proved Yuta right," Kaito snickered.

"I did _what_?"

Kaito laughed more at his flabbergasted expression before he could finally calm down. "Yuta said that you might be jealous. I really didn't think you would be. And of Tatsumi and Sawatari?" he scoffed, but started to giggle again.

Kakeru burned red, "I'm not jealous! Especially of those two!" He crossed his arms, turning away to hide his face, "I just wish… we were closer."

Kaito stopped his snickering abruptly to stare at his twin. "Kakeru… You're right to say that we aren't that close." He eyed Kakeru as he flinched at his words. "But, we're getting better, aren't we? It's not like we're ignoring each other. So, your concerns are silly."

Kakeru coiled inward tightly, then sprung towards Kaito suddenly. "Don't call my feelings silly, you boor!"

"Huh?" Kaito blinked in utter confusion. They stared at each other for a heartbeat, before they both broke into laughter.

"There's Kakeru," Kaito said, patting the redhead on the shoulder. He let go, stepping towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Kakeru questioned.

Kaito sighed, "I suddenly remembered that Yuta probably hasn't done his homework in favor of goofing off, as usual." His frown dipped more at another thought, "Shu too, now that I think about it."

Kakeru rolled his eyes, "Those two never get their work done."

On their way to the door, Kaito stopped short. He turned back to Kakeru. "Kakeru. Next time, just tell me straight, okay? We don't need to be awkward. I think that we… get along pretty well."

Kakeru paused this time. He sighed loudly, holding his hands out in an exaggerated shrug. "And you say _I'm_ dramatic."

"What?" Kaito scowled.

Kakeru snickered. He draped his arm around Kaito's neck. "Don't worry, _bro_. We'll be close from here on out, I'm sure of it."

Kaito released a calm sigh as he melted into Kakeru's grasp. "Yeah… I agree."

 **~0~**

 **Thank you to everyone who made it to the end! I hope you enjoyed the story! There's still a lot of missing details, but I'm glad if someone has read until here.**


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